Precipitation levels in North Finland 1.5 –2 times higher than average
Outside of the Arctic region of Lapland, Finland experienced record-breaking average temperatures and all-time highs in the month of January says the Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI),
“At some observation stations, the previous records were exceeded by as much as over two degrees,” meteorologist Pauli Jokinen said in news release.
The record mild temperatures stretched all across southern Finland and up to the North Ostrobothnia city and municipality of Oulu.
In the affected areas, the temperatures were 7–8 C milder than usual compared the 1981–2010 reference period.
“In many areas, the average temperature of January was equivalent to typical conditions in late March and early April,” Jokinen said.
A Tweet from the Finnish Meteorological Institute announcing January’s record breaking temperatures:
#Tammikuu oli ennätyksellisen leuto aina Oulun korkeudelle saakka. Kuukauden keskilämpotila oli osassa maata jopa 7‒8 astetta tavanomaista korkeampi, ja vastasi maalis-huhtikuun lukemia. Lapissa oli paikoin ennätyksellisen paljon lunta. https://t.co/T5cXoqe36r #sää pic.twitter.com/KHKfrYcRvn
— Ilmatieteen laitos (@meteorologit) February 1, 2020
Arctic outlier?
Although many parts of Lapland were 2-5 C milder than usual depending on the region, the FMI said the numbers could not be considered exceptional.
Where Lapland did stand out was with its snowfall, which reached record levels of 110 cm in some regions.
This was in stark contrast to the more southern and central regions of Finland that received exceptionally little snowfall compared to the average.
Precipitation levels in north Finland were 1.5 – 2 times higher than usual, something the FMI characterized as rare, occurring only once every 10 years or even less frequently.
The most recent January FMI stats follow the weather office’s roundup of Lapland’s autumn weather conditions, calculated from September to November, which found that the region was approximately 1 – 2 C colder than usual.
Write to Eilís Quinn at eilis.quinn(at)cbc.ca.
Related stories from around the North:
Finland: 40 C temperature gap between northern and southern Finland, Yle News
Norway: Temperatures on Svalbard have been above normal for 100 straight months, The Independent Barents Observer
Russia: Russian climate report stresses adaptation but no reduction in fossil fuel extraction, The Independent Barents Observer
Sweden: January temperatures about 10°C above normal in parts of northern Sweden, says weather service, Radio Sweden
United States: Temperatures nearing all-time records in Southcentral Alaska, Alaska Public Media
