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Severe frost in Siberia - Yakutsk
A lobe of air that broke off of the polar vortex, which is currently blanketing parts of Siberia, is sending temperatures plummeting across parts of Canada.

Canada is no stranger to temperatures below -30°C, but parts of eastern Russia have plummeted below -40°C since the middle of December, courtesy of the bone-chilling polar vortex lingering over Siberia. One of the more chilling temperatures, in Delyankir, just northeast of the coldest, permanently inhabited places on Earth recorded a -58°C on January 18th, 2021.

A lobe of frigid air that broke off of the polar vortex meandered its way down across North America and is sending temperatures tumbling across Canada. This raises the question, will the coldest air in the world soon make an appearance in Canada?


First, let's look at a map that figuratively takes your breath away, or literally, if you're a resident of Yakutsk, Russia.

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For over 40 days, daytime highs remained below -30°C in the capital city of the Sakha Republic, with just over six hours of meagre daylight contributing next-to-nothing in terms of warmth.

POLAR VORTEX IS IN SHAMBLES

The temperature outlook is bleak for the remainder of January over Siberia - the coldest air in the world will continuously recharge and replenish itself over the region. Although it's been cold even by Siberian standards, we can't soon forget the record warmth anomaly that helped catapult the planet to one of the warmest years on record in 2020.

Keep in mind, back in last May, 'zombie fires' cropped into our lexicon - the forest fires that surprised us by smouldering below the Siberian snowpack. Temperatures soared to 38°C in Verkhoyansk last spring, while this week -57.5°C was recorded. That makes this a 95°C temperature difference!

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The polar vortex has been temperamental as of late -- it has recently weakened and allowed colder air to drift towards lower latitudes.

(Read more here)