There is currently 91 centimetres of snow in Paljakka, which is once again a record for this winter. The top spot is held by Kilpisjärvi, where the snow depth is one centimetre deeper.
From winter to winter, Puolanka Paljakka is on the list of the snowiest places in the country.
The snowfall at Paljakka is influenced by the high altitude and south-westerly winds, as the air mass from there is forced upwards when it encounters Paljakka and other hazards. As it rises, the air mass cools, allowing the moisture in the air to enter the ground as snowfall.
On the 384-metre-high Paljakka Pass, the snow is again deep, as the snow cover is usually at its thickest in March.
There is now 91 centimeters of snow in Paljaka, and this winter’s record readings are being threatened again. The top spot is Kilpisjärvi, where the snow depth is more than a centimeter.
The Finnish Meteorological Institute has measurement data from Paljaka’s current automatic station since 2010. The maximum snow depth from the station is from 2020, 136 centimeters. Before the automatic equipment, the measurements were done by hand.
Due to the heavy snowfall, the roofs of the buildings built on top of Paljaka have double durability. In the worst winter, 38,000 trees from an area of \u200b\u200bmore than 1,000 hectares have been cut down by the snow that accumulates on the trees.
This year, there is more snow than usual in Kainuu, and clearly less than usual in the majority of the country.
Global warming effects on snow are misunderstood
– The coastal sea area does not necessarily get covered in ice like before, and if a cold air mass comes over it, then there may be a lot of snow in the coastal areas.
Snow amounts in Kainuu, Koilismaa and Eastern Finland are more difficult to predict.
– Russia as a continent is challenging when it comes to low pressure routes, if cold air blows into the sea area from there, it makes the coast very thick snowfalls.
– When a low pressure moves from south to north, and a warm air mass flows on its back side, it may throw snow on the coast, but sleet and water inland.
Valtonen emphasizes that assessing future winters is difficult. Many people think that global warming means that it is always warm in Finland and there is no snow at all.
– It cannot be simplified so drastically. Rather, there will be a greater variation between winters than at present. There may be several winters with very little snow, excluding Lapland. Then there may be very snowy winters.
Everything depends on the prevailing flow directions, the past winter has been very mild for the most part, because in Finland there have been air flows between the west and southwest. The transition between January and February almost resembled spring floods.
– It’s not terribly normal and such situations will probably become more common in the future.
*How much snow is appropriate? You can discuss the topic until 23:00 on March 15.*