Air temperature

 

The abnormally warm weather which reigned in the ETR in January migrated to the beginning of February. In the first decade, new air temperature maxima were recorded in Central Russia and the Russian North where the decade-averaged temperature anomalies ranged from two to six or more degrees. In the Urals, these anomalies where even higher: up to or greater than +8°. At the same time, the trends in Siberia and the Far East were different: while the weather in the north of Siberia and in the south of the Far East was noticeably warmer than usual (with the decade-averaged anomalies of up to +8-12° and new daily temperature maxima in Evenkiya, Primorye and Sakhalin), the weather in the south of Siberia and in the north of the Far East was mostly colder, and the above anomalies were in the range -4…-7°. In Chukotka, the frosts were as cold as -50…-55°, and new daily temperature minima were recorded.

In the second decade, colds descended upon the ETR, and the average temperature dropped below the normal value everywhere, notably, by 2-3 or more degrees below in the south and west. The warmth in the Urals subsided (resulting in anomalies of +2…4° as compared to +6…8° in the first decade). In the north of the Far East, the abnormal warmth replaced the cold, and the weather became 6-8° warmer than usual. The anomalies reached 2-3 or more degrees in Siberia, new temperature maxima were set for several days in a row in Chukotka, and the record-breaking warmth was observed in Primorye.

In the third decade, the weather in the central and southern regions of the ETR became yet colder with the frosts down to -20…-24° in Donbass and the Rostov Region, and the thermometers in the Stavropol and Krasnodar Territories showed record low readings. The decade-averaged temperature anomalies reached -3…-10°. The abnormally cold weather returned to Chukotka.

Due to all these sub-monthly perturbations, air temperature averages in February were distributed across the Russian Federation as follows – Centre and south of the ETR: normal and cold weather (anomalies of +1…-3°); North of the ETR, Urals, north of Siberia, Khabarovsk Territory and Primorye: warm weather (anomalies of +3…5° or higher); Rest of the territory: roughly normal weather.

The temperature monthly-averaged in February across the whole Russian territory was outside the top highest in the ranking list compiled since 1891, and the same can be said about almost all regions except for the south of the Far East which was the second warmest in that list and for the Urals which were the tenth. Owing to record-breaking warm December and to nearly record-breaking January, winter 2024/2025 became the second warmest in the meteorological chronicle of Russia, yielding the leadership to the unprecedented warm winter 2019/2020.

This winter, no location where the temperature was subnormal existed throughout the whole Russian territory. The air temperatures averaged over the months of December through February were higher than normal (by 2-8° for the most part) all the way from the western border to the Pacific Ocean. This winter was the warmest in history in the ATR, and the second warmest in the ETR as well as in Central Russia, the Volga region, the Urals, Siberia and the south of the Far East separately.

The monthly-averaged temperature in East Asia was close to normal, against the background of negative anomalies in Mongolia, in the east of China, on the Korean Peninsula and in the south of Japan, and against the background of positive ones in the rest of the territory. The weather in the vicinity of Taiwan was noticeably colder than normal.

The temperatures in South-East Asia were approximately normal.

This February in India was the all-time warmest, breaking the high set in 2006 and establishing new air temperature maxima in a number of locations. The largest anomalies of monthly-averaged temperature (+2° or more) were observed in the north of the country and in the north of neighbouring Pakistan as well.

The weather in the Central Asian countries was markedly warmer than usual: by 2-6° in Kazakhstan, by 2-4° in Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan, and by 2° in Tajikistan.

The monthly-averaged temperature in the Near and Middle East was close to normal; certain areas in the east of Turkey and in the South Caucasus were the only places where the weather was notably colder than usual.

The temperatures in most of North Africa were normal. In the east, the thermometers showed above 40° on some days.

The temperatures in most of the European continent were also normal, against the background of negative anomalies in the east and of positive ones in the west and north. The north of Norway, Sweden and Finland was the only area where the monthly-averaged air temperature was higher than normal by 2-4 or more degrees.

This February was cold in a large part of the US and Canada. In the middle of the month, Arctic colds hit the West and Midwest of the USA and the south-west of Canada, and the temperatures dropped to -45…-50°. Hard frosts penetrated to the central regions of Texas where new air temperature minima were set. The monthly-averaged temperature was noticeably higher than normal (by 2…8°) in the north of Canada, on the Arctic islands and in neighbouring Greenland, normal in the south-east of the USA, and above-normal in its south-west (by about 2°).

In the Arctic, this February was the warmest in history, the monthly-averaged air temperature exceeding its normal value by more than 4°.

As for the entire Northern Hemisphere, its monthly-averaged air temperature was ranked the third to fifth highest in the history of meteorological observations since 1891.

This winter in the Hemisphere was record-breaking warm: it reproduced the temperature maximum set a year before. It was the warmest in India and the second warmest in Canada and the Arctic. The normal average temperature in winter was exceeded by 2-8° in Canada and Alaska in the Western Hemisphere, and by roughly the same amount from Eastern Europe to the Pacific Ocean in the Eastern Hemisphere. This winter was colder than usual in the east of the US, in the Middle East, in South-East Asia and in Iceland.

In the capital of Russia, winter 2024/2025 was the second warmest in the meteorological chronicle, yielding to the all-time warmest winter 2019/2020 only.

 

La Niña, the cold phase of the Southern Oscillation, was observed this February in the equatorial Pacific. Negative anomalies located along the equator reached -1° in terms of the monthly averages. However, the surface of the Ocean in the Northern Hemisphere remained extremely warm, and the average temperature became the highest for February despite La Niña. The monthly-averaged SST anomalies exceeded +1…2° over a huge water area. Negative anomalies were recorded off the coast of the US and Mexico, as well as in the East China Sea.

The average SST in the Atlantic Ocean was also extremely high: the second highest in the ranking list after the record-breaking value of the previous year. SST anomalies, including high ones (larger than 1°), were positive almost everywhere.

In the ETR, normal amounts of atmospheric moisture in February were only measured in the northern regions (the Murmansk Region, the Nenets Autonomous District and the Republic of Komi) and in the republics, territories and regions of the South and North-Caucasian Federal Districts; in the rest of the ETR, precipitation was in shortage. Still, this did not preclude individual heavy snowfalls from hitting the Rostov Region, Crimea and Karelia at the beginning of the month and Central Russia, the Volga region and Crimea again in mid-February. In the third decade, snowfalls swept over the Volgograd Region and the North Caucasus, sometimes setting new maxima of daily precipitation totals and creating the cover of freshly fallen snow as deep as 15-20 cm.

A lot of snow went to the Yamal-Nenets Autonomous District in the northern Urals and to Siberia (viz., Evenkiya, the southern regions of Western Siberia and of the Krasnoyarsk Territory). In the Far East, one and a half times the normal monthly precipitation amount was received in the Khabarovsk Territory and the Jewish Autonomous Region, and normal or subnormal amounts, in the rest of the territory. Primorye and the Amur Region were awarded less than half the normal quantity. In the earth of the country, heavy snowfalls occurred in the Khabarovsk Territory, Evenkiya, Khanty-Mansi Autonomous District, on Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands, in Altai, Khakassia and Tyva, as well as in the Novosibirsk and Kemerovo Regions. Similar to the ETR, some of these snowfalls concluded in record-breaking achievements.

Winter was short of snow in the ETR: this shortage was apparent everywhere except for the north-eastern and sometimes southern regions. The winter precipitation totals in the northern Urals, in Siberia and in the north of the Far East were normal.

The weather in East Asia was mostly dry: the monthly precipitation totals amounted to less than half the normal figure in Mongolia and northern China, or were altogether zero in some places. The central regions of China and the northern regions of Japan were the only exceptions where precipitation was normal.

Precipitation in the countries of South-East Asia was normal, or increased in places, with its adequate amounts in Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia and the northern regions of Thailand, and with insufficient ones in other countries. No precipitation at all was recorded in Laos, Cambodia and Myanmar.

Completely no rain fell in India and the south of Pakistan.

The "Precipitation" columns in reports were filled with zeroes by the majority of meteorological stations in the Near and Middle East. Turkey was suffering from the drought: there, the precipitation totals for the first two month of the year were substantially less than normal. In contrast, snowfalls passed in Turkey, Georgia, Azerbaijan and Iran, and heavy showers hit the southern regions of Azerbaijan where two and a half times the normal rainwater amount was recorded, and floods ensued.

In Central Asia, precipitation was normal in the west of Kazakhstan, in Uzbekistan, as well as in Afghanistan where heavy rains caused floods. The weather in the east of Kazakhstan, in Kyrgyzstan and in Tajikistan was dry.

In North Africa, rains fell solely in some regions of Algeria and Morocco as well as in the countries of the Gulf of Guinea, and the rest of the territory was dry.

Dry weather prevailed in Europe where the monthly precipitation totals were subnormal everywhere save for some areas in the west of the continent and in Italy. In Sicily and southern Italy, a huge amount of precipitation fell just in a few days: its total figure exceeded the normal monthly quantity.

In Canada, precipitation was normal in the central and northern part of the country, and almost absent in the earth and west. In the USA, heavy rains fell in the West and Midwest, causing severe floods and killing people in the states of Kentucky, Georgia and West Virginia. The water levels in the rivers rose to record highs. More than 100 mm of atmospheric moisture accumulated in a couple of days in some places. Yet, most of the country experienced a shortage of precipitation. In Mexico, dry weather in the north was balanced by heavy rains in the central and southern parts of the country.

This winter, precipitation was subnormal in most of the Northern Hemisphere, especially in Asia apart from the ATR. This was also true for North Africa, Eastern Europe, Mexico and the US.

In Moscow, the precipitation total in February amounted to 9 mm equal to 20% of the normal monthly value, and promoted this February to the first ten driest second months of year in 135 years of observations. The winter precipitation total was slightly less than normal.

Hydrometcentre of Russia