Overview
- Temperatures in the Moscow region fell to −25.9°C in Serebryanye Prudy, with −23.3°C in Lukhoviцы and −22.6°C in Cherusti, while central Moscow registered −10.2°C and −12.6°C at the VDNH station.
- The Hydrometcenter says the night of January 18 could rank among the season’s coldest, with Moscow forecast at −17 to −23°C and parts of the region down to −27°C, followed by daytime highs near −9 to −11°C.
- Meteorologists attribute the intensified frost to a ridge of the Siberian high that has developed into an anticyclone and moved west into European Russia, favoring strong nighttime cooling.
- Siberia is expected to bear the harshest conditions, with forecasts of −35 to −40°C in Zabaykalsky Krai and the Irkutsk region, and −31 to −36°C in Yakutia as well as the Omsk, Tomsk, and Tyumen regions.
- The Irkutsk Hydrometcenter warns of local minima reaching −49 to −54°C with clearing skies; authorities report 68 roadside warming points and plan to deploy about 900 personnel for Epiphany safety operations.