Interview: Frosts will come to Petersburg to –17

From Sunday, December 19, a cooling will begin in St. Petersburg. In the middle of the week, frosts have reached a peak: –17 degrees in St. Petersburg and up to –20 in the Leningrad region are expected. But by the New Year, according to the preliminary forecast, warming is possible.

"Paper" talked about temperature, precipitation and icyel in the coming weeks with the head of the weather bureau of the Russian State Hydrometeorological University Yuri Kutkevich.

Yuri Kutkevich

Head of Weather Office of the Russian State Hydrometeorological University

-From Sunday, December 19, throughout European Russia, including in the North-West region and St. Petersburg, cooling is expected. If on Sunday it will be insignificant - from –2 to –4 degrees of frost - then in the following days the frosts will intensify.

This is due to the fact that in the central part of European Russia there will be a cyclone, and we will be in its cold rear part. And the winds will be mainly from the northern directions-northern, northeast, sometimes northwest-and they will bring cold from the Arctic to us.

Somewhere in the middle of the week, 21, 22, 23 [December], [will] be reached the maximum when the temperature will decrease to –15-17 degrees of frost at night. <...> In the region, especially in the northeast, it can be up to –20 and lower.

Large precipitation is not expected, but at times light snow can take place. Atmospheric pressure on Saturday will decrease slightly, then it will begin to gradually increase. There is nothing especially to worry about weather -dependent people: if the pressure is changing, then smoothly, sharp jumps in one direction or another are not expected.

Halfly is possible as soon as the temperature begins to translate through zero degrees and will “freeze”. In fact, already on Saturday there may be ice on the roads. Actually, all week, motorists on the roads should be attentive.

The wind will be moderate, somewhere from 5 to 8–9 m/s.

Weakening of frost, warming is expected at the very end of next week - closer to the weekend [December 25–26]. The temperature will increase to –5-10 degrees.

[As for the New Year’s week], according to the preliminary forecast, warming will most likely occur. The upcoming week will be cold, and in the last week, which will be New Year, most likely, will warmer. But as far as it gets warmer, it’s hard to say now. I think that it will not reach the thaw, but there will be some kind of slightly modorous weather.

Photo on the cover: Alexander Demyanchuk / TASS

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