Trøndelag Cold; Fall Arrives With A Bang In U.S.; New Zealand's Bumper Ski Season; + Japan Weather Bureau Forecasts Epic Winter Snow

During the previous La Niña winter (2021-22), Geto Kogen received 79 feet of snow, requiring the resort’s chairlifts to be regularly dug out.

Trøndelag Cold

Fifteen locations across Trøndelag, a region in central Norway, experienced biting cold Tuesday morning—the lowest temperatures of the autumn season so far. The cold snap was fierce, and snowy, and has signaled an early arrival of winter.

Last winter was exceptionally cold across Scandinavia, with the season culminating in a historic low of -44.3C (-47.7F) at Finland’s Enontekiö airport—the coldest temperature recorded in Fennoscandia.

This extreme chill had wide-ranging impacts , including an unusual influx of waxwings into the UK, resulting in a rare "waxwing winter" as these birds, typically native to colder regions, migrated south in search of food. As Dr. Viola Ross-Smith from the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) explained, "Waxwings have a so-called irruptive migration which means their autumn and winter movements are largely driven by the need to find sufficient food." Due to a frozen berry crop in Scandinavia, thousands of waxwings traveled south to Britain in late autumn, seemingly preempting the exceptionally cold winter that followed.

Scandinavia's cold persisted throughout the season, breaking records in January 2024 and also throughout the spring. April set new historical benchmarks across northern Europe, in fact, but particularly in Sweden and Norway. On April 3—for example—Nikkaluokta, Sweden, posted a low of -34.1C (-29.4F), breaking a monthly record that had stood since 1955. Meanwhile, in Norway, the northern settlement of Cuovddatmokki experienced five consecutive days with lows below -25C (-13F), a first.

The cold set records in Finnmark, Norway, and all. On April 4, Suolovuopmi logged -31.9C (-25.4F), making it the second-lowest temperature ever registered at the station in April (surpassed only by a 2013 reading).

The persistence of such frigid conditions long into spring marked the 2023-24 cold season as one of the most severe Scandinavia has ever experienced. And now, as highlighted above, winter 2024-25 is starting early. Are we set for a repeat?

Fall Arrives With A Bang In U.S.

This week, a powerful cold front is sweeping the U.S., ushering in freezing temperatures, frost, and even sizable snowfalls.