Siberian blast sweeps across Europe

A Siberian weather system dubbed the “Beast from the East” is bringing snow, strong winds and the coldest temperatures for years to many regions across Europe, with the freeze expected to continue

Minimum temperature        Forecast for March 2
Celsius 
-30°
-20°
-10°
  0° 
 10°
 20°

Reykjavik
Helsinki 
Oslo 
Stockholm
Berlin
Warsaw 
Vienna
Siberia
Dublin 
London
Moscow
ATLANTIC OCEAN
Kiev 
Belgrade
Lisbon 
Ankara
Paris 
Madrid
Rome
Athens

500km 300 miles


POLAR VORTEX: Large area of cold air that circles above North (and South) Pole

1 Rapid warming of stratosphere – layer of air that extends from about 10km to 50km above ground level – occurs over Arctic

2 Polar vortex weakened by temperature rise, splits into two or more vortices

3 Wintry air from Siberia forced eastwards, plunging Europe into freezing conditions

1 
2
3


Sources: Weather Online UK, Mashable, Reuters
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