Late snow in Lapland, mild days nationwide mark Finland’s October
Snow came late to Arctic Finland this October, capping off a month of mild weather that stretched from Lapland to the southern archipelago.
“October was unusually warm throughout the country, even exceptionally warm in Northern Finland,” the Finnish Meteorological Institute said.
Nationwide, October ran 1 to 3.5 degrees C warmer than the 1991–2020 average.
In Enontekiö, a far-north municipality on Finland’s border with Norway, the monthly temperature average was around +1.5 C.
Kilpisjärvi village, tucked in the northwest arm of Lapland near Sweden and Norway, didn’t get snow until Oct 16, a significant change from its usual arrival earlier in the month.
But even once it came, snow cover stayed thin.
“Snow cover in Lapland was slightly lower than usual for the time period,” the FMI said.
“In the second half of the month, there was little snow on the ground in Central and Northern Lapland, and at the end of October only in places in Northern Lapland.”
Lowest temperature recorded in Far North
Temperatures elsewhere in Finland told a similar story.
On Finland’s southwest coast, the island of Vänö in Kimito recorded a high of 15.7 C on Oct. 6. The month’s coldest reading, ‒13.4 C, came on Oct. 21 at two sites in the northernmost parts of the country, Muonio’s Oustajärvi station and Enontekiö Airport.
Meanwhile, precipitation patterns varied across the country.
Tornio’s Kaakkuri station, on the northwest border with Sweden, led the country with 114.6 mm for the month, including the heaviest single-day rainfall of 30.2 mm on Oct. 23.
Elsewhere, southern parts of the country were drier than usual; with some eastern districts getting barely half their normal October rain.
Otherwise, the west and southwest coasts, along with much of the North, ended up slightly wetter than average, while Lake Mekrijärvi in Ilomantsi, near the Russian border, recorded the least precipitation at 30.3 mm.
Sunshine was limited across much of the country. Western Finland got between 70 and 110 hours of sun, while most other regions saw a slightly-below-average 30 to 70 hours
Comments, tips or story ideas? Contact Eilís at eilis.quinn(at)cbc.ca
Related stories from around the North:
Canada: As COP30 nears, new report warns of ‘irreversible’ polar ice loss, Eye on the Arctic
Finland: Flooding in Finland is getting worse, new climate report says, Yle News
Iceland: Iceland sees security risk, existential threat in Atlantic Ocean current’s possible collapse, Reuters
Greenland: Facing rapid Arctic warming, Inuit call for full voice in COP30 climate decisions, Eye on the Arctic
Norway: Weather above normal for 18 consecutive months, The Independent Barents Observer
Russia: New NOAA report finds vast Siberian wildfires linked to Arctic warming, The Associated Press
Sweden: Proposal—Sweden’s 2030 climate targets to remain unchanged, Radio Sweden
United States: How the Arctic has been ‘pushed & triggered’ into climate extremes: paper, Eye on the Arctic
