What everyone has seen and experienced is now official. The Christmas holidays have never had as little snow as this year, reports GeoSphere Austria, formerly the Central Institute for Meteorology and Geodynamics (ZAMG). There was snow on only 35 percent of Austria. The measurements go back to 1961. On average over the past three decades, 70 percent of Austria’s area was white during the Christmas holidays.
Marc Olefs, climate researcher at GeoSphere Austria, sees a combination of man-made global warming and short-term fluctuations as the reason for the extreme lack of snow this winter. “Winters have become warmer in recent decades, which is why rain falls more often than snow, especially at low altitudes,” says the scientist.
Vienna warmer than Madrid
Extremely high temperatures have had Austria firmly in its grip for the past four weeks, while precipitation levels have been below average. The winter heat wave peaked on New Year’s Day with almost 20 degrees in Puchberg am Schneeberg (Lower Austria). So far, January in Austria has been more than seven degrees warmer than the average for the years 1961 to 1990, and the deviation is five degrees compared to the last 30 years.
Bregenz and Eisenstadt have so far been completely without frost in January, while temperatures in Vienna and Linz were once slightly below freezing. In fact, minus degrees are what make winter in our latitudes so special.
So far, the Viennese have been experiencing a warmer January than is usual in the Spanish capital, Madrid. The mean value is currently 7.0 degrees on the Hohe Warte, in Madrid January has an average of 6.2 degrees.
Italy low brings winter
But now winter is making a fresh start. A cold front will cross Austria on Sunday, rain showers will spread from the northwest and the snow line will fall below 1,000 meters by the evening. Things get exciting on Monday night. Because a low is forming over northern Italy, and especially in Carinthia and in the neighboring regions of Styria it then begins to snow, sometimes heavily.
Problems in early traffic, also on the Tauernautobahn, the Südautobahn and the Karawankenautobahn, seem to be inevitable in southern Austria. Even in the Klagenfurt basin it should snow ten to fifteen centimeters. In the previous winter in Klagenfurt there were never more than three centimeters. Significantly more snow falls along the Karawanken and south of it, i.e. in Slovenia.
Whether it will be enough for the first snow cover of this winter in Graz is still uncertain. Here, a few tenths of a degree decide between rain and snow. In any case, don’t expect much. It is enough for a snowball fight or a toboggan run on Monday in Styria, but at least in the Upper Mur Valley, in West Styria and in the Windische Bühel, here a few centimeters of snow fall.
Winter week
Although the precipitation in the south of Austria will decrease again on Monday morning, the low pressure will continue for a few more days. And more Italy lows are announced that are moving over Austria. In addition, it continues to cool down, the first below-average cold days since mid-December are imminent.
So the chances are good that it will snow one or the other time all over Austria during the week, and sometimes even heavily. This is good news for the ski resorts, especially with regard to the semester break, because the snow conditions are still below average.
Some valley runs are still white lines in the green landscape, some slopes are still closed at all. But the winter fun shouldn’t last too long. For the week after next, the weather models are already showing slightly milder weather again.
