snow

We have been observing the snow of the northern hemisphere from space for 40 years. The conclusions of the latest major study are devastating

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As some older people around us say: winter is already it’s not what it was. As we move forward in the decade, scientific data paints an increasingly clear and disturbing picture of the amount of snow that has accumulated in some parts of our planet. And the images seem to leave no room for doubt, since they suggest that snow coverage in the northern hemisphere is constantly reducing, altering the seasonal cycles that govern our climate. The data. The last job we have had access to was published in January of this same year, and the conclusion they have drawn is quite devastating when pointing out that 24% of the regions of the northern hemisphere show a significant decline in the presence of snow, compared to a mere 9% that has registered an increase in its amount. How it looked. To reach these conclusions, researchers have not limited themselves to looking at the thermometer. They have turned to a gigantic high-resolution database that brings together historical data since 1980 with information on both snow and ice. Mathematical model. But the real advance in this case lies in the use of advanced statistics. And, expanding on previous research from 2023, they have applied a two-state Markov chain model, which in simple terms is a mathematical model that allows analyzing the spatial and temporal probabilities of snow persisting or disappearing in specific grids on Earth over decades. That is why we are facing one of the most rigorous methodologies that currently exist to understand snow trends, eliminating the “noise” of the precipitation that is coming in the coming months. Early spring. But… Where exactly is the snow disappearing? The Markov model reveals that the decline is not uniform, but there is an alarming pattern that directly affects our side of the globe: spring melt is coming forward dramatically in Europe and Central Asia. Right now we are seeing snow melting earlier, shortening winter temperatures and directly altering the water cycle, which is vital for agriculture and ecosystems during the warmer months. The consequences. But it is not something new, since previous works already warned of this loss of snow, which is a decline that not only affects water reserves, but also the ability of the Earth’s surface to reflect solar radiation. Something that is not nonsense, since less snow means more exposed dark land, greater heat absorption and, consequently, an increase in regional temperatures. A consensus. In addition to this study, in 2025, research was also published that analyzed possible biases in climate records. NOAA historicalconfirming that the decline in snow during autumn and winter is a real phenomenon and not an erroneous measurement. But it does not stop there, since the last Arctic bulletin painted a very extreme scenario, since, although there was above-average snowfall until May 2025, the decline during June was so rapid and abrupt that snow coverage was reduced to half of what it was 60 years ago. A mixed and volatile pattern that shows a climate system under stress. Images | Mathieu Odin In Xataka | Under the Canary Islands rests a 1,625 meter volcano: it has now begun to show signs of life after ten years of vigil

The amount of snow that is accumulating in the Pyrenees can only be defined in one way: truly crazy

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If this piece had to be summarized in a single concept, this time it would be easy: lots of snow. A huge amount of snow. Every week, the Ebro Hydrographic Confederation publishes a snow reserve estimate in the basin. Analyzing this week’s data is surprising and, if the forecasts are right, next week is going to be spectacular. So much snow? A lot, yes. As They explained in Northern Meteo“the snow reserve on the Spanish side of the Pyrenees reached the 75th percentile of the 2002-2026 series on January 19.” That means that “in 15 out of every 20 years” there is less snow than what accumulates on the summits right now. Just see how Port del Comte is in the Solsona Pyrenees (or the Puerto de la Ragua in Almería), to realize that this is not normal. After years with a negligible snow reserveseeing the mountains like this is a joy that reminds us of the good times. But, as I say, this is the parrot’s chocolate: taking into account the impact of Storm Harry and the carousel of fronts that comes (with Ingrid at the helm), the models predict that the 90th percentile will be reached throughout this week. If so, “we would touch 1500hm3 of water in the form of snow.” And there is a lot of water coming. It’s better don’t beat around the bush: “the next two weeks will bring very heavy rain, strong winds, snow and rough seas.” But, in addition, it comes accompanied by cold and that, as we have explained, is going to collapse the snow level. In the coming days, it is very likely that we will see snow in most of the inland provincial capitals. It will only take hold in the mountains, but this gives a fairly graphic image of what is coming our way. What can we expect? Since Friday, when the first front knock down the thermometers of the northwest halfwe can expect cold, rain and snow. For Friday Snowfall warnings have already been activated in the interior of Galicia, most of Castilla y León, the Cantabrian mountain range and the Picos de Europa, Guadalajara, Cuenca, the Iberian system, the Central system, the Betic system and the Pyrenees. The accumulated will be more than 20 centimeters in Sanabria, the Ourense mountains and the León mountain range. on saturday are expected snowfall in Navarra, the Basque Country, Cuenca, Aragon, the Betic system and the Pyrenees. Here, as I say, they will be especially intense. Sunday is back, the snow can reach areas of the northern half, and some points of Castilla-La Mancha or Andalusia The great panorama. But beyond all that, what awaits us is an exceptional snow season. Although the rest of the winter will be much calmer, warmer and drier: we will have reserves of snow like we haven’t had in a long time. And that’s a lot more than we thought we could say at this point. Image | Tropical Tidbits In Xataka | Something comes “from the bowels of the Atlantic” to Spain and AEMET is clear about its impact: alert in 14 autonomous communities

a footprint in the snow is a death sentence

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Ukraine is experiencing one of those winters that are not only remembered for the temperature, but for what the war does with her: constant below zero, snow, fog and entire cities forced to survive as if the 21st century had suddenly turned off. In this scenario, the cold is not a backdrop, but rather a damage multiplier. Winter as a weapon. Yes, winter in Ukraine worsens wounds, makes any displacement a punishment and, above all, turns civil infrastructure (heating, electricity, water) into the cruelest targetbecause it is not just about destroying military capacity, but about making everyday life physically unfeasible. Total thermal terror. Russia has intensified a campaign that aims directly at the thermal heart of the cities, seeking to make winter the dirty work: Drones and missiles hit substations, distribution networks and plants that support both electricity and district heating, not as collateral damage, but as a method. In kyiv, with millions of inhabitants, this translates in unheated buildingsentire days without supplies and a qualitative leap in anguish: breathing inside the house seeing your own fog, sleeping dressed in a coat, improvising heat with emergency solutions and assuming that, if you have a small child, courage is no longer measured in holding on, but in fleeing in time. The goal is not just to shut down the city, but to push it towards the psychological limit where people begin to consider concessions, internal fractures and political fatigue. kyiv, vulnerable from the air. The capital continues to be a symbol and that is why it is being punished insistently: Russia cannot take it with ground forces, but it can can make it uninhabitable with repeated attacks from a distance, and cadence matters as much as power. The blows come in waves that seek to cut theto city of the general network and, when the teams try to repair, hit again right where work is being done, with a direct human cost in injured or dead energy technicians. Thus, anti-aircraft defense becomes a race of attrition that consumes ammunition, and the local administration is forced to prioritize the minimum so that the city does not collapse (subway, water or critical services) while the rest falls into a domestic gloom where the cold rules. Towards war thermal. On the contact line, winter not only freezes bodies: also visibility. Russia has tried take advantage of the fog thick as a natural curtain to move units and attack when enemy drones see worse, but the advantage lasts as long as it takes the rival to adapt. Ukraine has responded with logical evolution: more equipped drones with thermal cameras capable of “seeing” through fog because they do not look for shapes or colors, but rather heat and infrared contrast. From there, the battlefield stops being a landscape of visual camouflage and becomes a physical map where what gives away is no longer what is seen, but what it emits. The disappearance of the tank. Russia, sensing the opportunity provided by the extreme cold, has begun to “delete” their armored vehicles of the thermal spectrum with camouflage like the Nakidkaa type of coating designed to break up the vehicle’s infrared signature and make it difficult for a sensor to pick it out from the icy environment. In a winter where the bottom is pure cold, any source of heat becomes a beacon, so the survival of heavy material depends less and less on its armor and more and more on his ability not to give himself away. This also reflects a changing era: protection is no longer just steel and mobility, it is signature management, discipline and deception against sensors that never blink. The new eye on the front. The war has moved from the visual plane to thermal with a crudeness that redefines even the idea of ​​“being hidden”: a drone with thermal scope It can remain over an area for a long time, feeding a chain of objectives where any human presence, equipment, battery or generator ends up giving itself away. The most punished is not fast movement, but stationary life: observation posts, command centers, rest areas, drone teams, shelters with stoves and generators, places where you live more than fight. First it is detected, then it is observed, confirmed and activity is collected, and only then comes the hit with FPV, heavy drones “Baba Yaga” type or artillery, often at night, when the darkness protects less than ever and the thermal contrast is maximum. Footprints reveal more than anything else The heat trap. They remembered in a report from the Financial Times that the most repeated mistake with the arrival of winter is to think about appearance and not physics: the entrance to the shelter is camouflaged, the outline of the trench is covered, a net is placed, and still the position shines in the infrared. They don’t have to see you, they just have to see the constant anomaly, the repetition of a hot spot day after day, which is what attracts the attention of aerial reconnaissance. Often, soldiers do not even betray the secondary signs: heated floor, a smoking fireplace, the breath from a generator, heat leaking through an intake, electronics on, or even engine exhaust. Traces as a sentence. An analyst said this week that, in the Ukrainian winter, walking can be leave a written signature on the ground. The freshly fallen snow, extremely reflective, turns into a “dark” surface for thermal cameras, and recent prints appear as a lighter trace, not because they are actually hotter, but because of an apparent contrast created by physical changes. Thus, the boot compacts the snow, alters its emissivity and generates a difference infrared detectable during hours when the cold is intense. In conditions like this, the landscape not only shows where someone is, but where they were, and that is the most terrifying idea: in the absolute white of the Ukrainian winter, the steps can be a coordinate and the trail a invitation to an explosive drone who no longer needs … Read more

Reed Hastings became a millionaire by conquering the couch with Netflix. Now he wants to turn the snow into a gold mine

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Reed Hastings is the co-founder and CEO of Netflix, one of the largest entertainment platforms in the world. If Hastings knows anything it’s how to have fun. The enterprising businessman started a project in 2023 designed for a handful of millionaires looking to have fun skiing on virgin snow through some private tracks that can only be used by a handful of members of a exclusive ski club in the mountains of Utah. ​An exclusive ski club for millionaires. Hastings has become the main investor and architect of an exclusive access ski community for high-net-worth individuals in Powder Mountain, northern Utah (USA). That private community is called Powder Haven and is conceived as a private ski resort reserved for the exclusive enjoyment of approximately 650 families, who ski in a highly controlled environment within a domain that covers approximately 4,860 hectares. high mountain. The private Hastings ski resort is planned as a kind of “VIP space” with access to the ski area that already exists at Powder Mountain and is still open as a public resort. The result is a hybrid model in which the fee of a few very rich people helps finance infrastructure that is also used by skiers who buy a conventional ski pass. Fees and millionaire houses. According to published Forbes, Hastings has already invested more than $100 million in the acquisition and improvement of the Powder Mountain private space, assuming debt equivalent to that of the previous owners. This new capital has been used to renew the lifts and to install new lines to other areas of the resort to expand the ski area. OK to what was published by The Wall Street JournalHastings is reportedly planning to invest $200 million more to improve services for wealthy homeowners. The station’s annual membership fee is $25,000, which is added to an initial contribution and, above all, to the purchase of a home within the community, a necessary condition to be part of the private club. The houses that make up the private ski complex start at 2 million dollars and the first phase, with 39 plots at an average price equivalent to about 2.4 million euros per unit, were sold out in just a few months. Arclodge and a new mountain neighborhood The project is not limited to building luxury villas. In the heart of Powder Haven, Arclodge is being designed, a large Swiss-style social and sports club with futuristic lines that aspires to become the center of the resort’s community life. As seen in the resort pagethe new 6,800 m2 building plans to include all the luxury services to which its millionaire members are accustomed: haute cuisine restaurants, thermal and sports pools, spa and treatment rooms, gym and spaces for cultural and sports activities. New neighborhoods have been planned around this new social nucleus to luxury homes of different sizesranging from large multi-hectare plots to turnkey luxury villas designed by high-profile architecture studios. Of course, all of them with direct access to the private ski slopes. There are only three private stations like this. The Powder Haven model that the Netflix founder is developing is not a pioneering project. In fact, it is the third private ski complex that exists in the US: Yellowstone Club in Montana, and Wasatch Peaks Ranchalso in Utah. In these three enclaves, access to the slopes does not depend on a ski pass open to the general public, but rather requires being a member-owner of a property in their luxury real estate complex. Reed Hastings is the only one that has been able to take advantage of this business model based on the exclusivity of private ski services for millionaires with almost total absence of queues and a certain coexistence with the public domain of Powder Mountain, so that the extension of its slopes is expanded at a very low cost. In Xataka | Ski resorts without snow at the end of the century: the most pessimistic models show what could happen in our high mountains Image | Unsplash (Republic GmbH), Powder Haven

How to see the warnings for extreme cold and snow anywhere in Spain

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We are going to tell you how to see the AEMET weather warnings, with which you will be able to know every day when and where extreme cold or snow is expected to fall. This way, you can get this information directly from the main source. On this website you will be able to see a map with the weather warnings indicated with colors, depending on whether they are yellow, orange or red alerts. You will also know if the alerts are due to wind, waves, extreme temperatures or snow. Check weather warnings To check the weather warnings throughout the Spanish territory you have to enter the website aemet.es/es/eltiempo/forecast/notices. On this web page, at the top you will see a map where weather alerts are indicated. On the left you can choose to see only a specific type of alerts or on specific days. Below the map you will have a timeline, so you can review the status of the alerts hour by hour by clicking on the one you want. And below, you will first have a list with all the notices in a color code, indicating towns and showing you icons so that you know the main notices that are in each of them. Furthermore, below you will have the details of the notices. In them you will be given specific information about each of the notices, such as their level, expected values ​​or probability, as well as comments and start and end times. In Xataka Basics | Personal weather forecast in Gemini: how to use it to ask the weather today and how to schedule forecasts to appear for you

The “apocalypse” of snow and cold that awaited us for Reyes is going to be much less so

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The Three Wise Men, in addition to bringing us gifts (or some coal) have also brought the arrival of winter in Spain for the first time this year. Storm Francis has turned the first Monday of the year into a logistical and meteorological challenge for many, with white prints in inland capitals, and plummeting temperatures to values ​​that we have not seen for months. And the truth is that there are still some hours of great instability. A white map. The images we are seeing this Monday are undoubtedly impressive with Madrid capital with snow, snow plows on the main roads of the country like the A4 or the A6 and also with the cathedral of Segovia covered in a layer of white. Something that It is also accompanied by significant rainfall in the south of Spain.mainly affecting the province of Malaga, which activated yesterday a red alert. If we focus on the snow, during the last hours accumulations of up to 10 cm have been recorded in 24 hours in the Central System environment. Something that is accompanied by snowfall in other places that are common and are located at a high altitude. Less than expected. In the previous days, it was expected that these snowfalls would be much more intense, equating it in many cases with a Filomena 2.0. But in the end it has remained in more localized snowfalls at high levels and at the lower levels they have not been as relevant as what was reported in previous days. The same thing happened in previous days, where a New Year’s Eve covered in white was expected but in the end it did not happen. It is not a model of models. This meteorological change can be attributed to the fact that the prediction models are useless, but the reality is that they work quite well, as explains an AEMET researcher in X. The problem is that the use we give to these models is not the most appropriate, since all the catastrophic news of significant snowfalls come out within several days, and the reality is that the uncertainty here is very high. To have real data on what may happen in our country, we have to wait until we are closer to the specific date to have a prediction that is close to the reality that we are going to experience. Impact on mobility. In this way, if we look at the rainfall that has fallen on the roads, we find complications when traveling, or even impossible being cut, especially in Andalusia. But also effects on the railways, suffering interruptions, for example the line between Cercedilla and Segovia due to the accumulation of snow on the tracks. Some cold rides. With these meteorological events, all eyes are on what will happen with the traditional parades of the Three Wise Men that take place in different parts of Spain throughout the afternoon of this January 5th. In some locations already have had to be canceled due to the risk of precipitationand in other places they have been brought forward to this Monday morning, as has happened in the capital of Granada. What the AEMET points out is that the course of the parades will be marked by a significant drop in temperatures. They emphasize especially the northern, central and eastern areas of the peninsula, where temperatures below zero are expected at 8:00 p.m. And even in the areas of the Cantabrian Sea and the southeast of the peninsula they could be covered in snow or water. The forecast on January 6. For those who want to enjoy the holiday, on Three Kings’ Day, Storm Francis will tend to weaken. This will make them wait residual snowfall centered on the Cantabrian Mountains, the Pyrenees and northern mountain areasbut the intensity on the Plateau will decrease drastically. But the important thing is that even if the snow stops falling, the cold doesn’t go away. Temperatures will remain below normal, meaning the risk of extreme nighttime frosts will remain, turning accumulated snow to ice. This will mean that caution must prevail when traveling by road, especially in the early hours of the morning. Why now. Storm Francis is not an isolated phenomenon, but the result of a channeling cold arctic air over the Peninsula. While a more conventional trade wind regime dominates in the Canary Islands, the interior of the peninsula is trapped in a pocket of cold air that interacts with Mediterranean humidity. This explains why, in addition to the snow in the interior of the peninsula, we are seeing intense rains in the area of ​​Alborán and eastern Andalusia, where the snow level is higher, but the volume of water is being very significant, as we have commented previously. In Xataka | The “tropicalization” of the atmosphere is going to change Spain and not exactly for the better

a storm that aims to leave Twelfth Night under snow

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The weather models are slowly beginning to give us a vision of what is going to happen in these first days of January, and the reality is that we are already looking forward to a Three Kings’ night. with really low temperatures and even snow cover. Something that responds to the arrival of the storm Francisan anticyclonic block at high latitudes and an outbreak of continental polar air. The clash of masses. For a heavy snowfall to occur on the Iberian Peninsula, it is not enough for it to be cold, but humidity is also needed. That is why the scenario they propose GFS models and ECMWF for this January 2026 it is, technically, textbook. All this because an anticyclone has been installed in northern Europe and arctic areas, which forces very cold air to move south, directly towards Spain. While this cold settles on the peninsula, we must not forget about the storm Francis that enters from the southwest loaded with humidity. And when Francis’ humidity collides with the “wall” of frigid air already over the peninsula, a so-called “mass clash” occurs. This is where it turns into snow generally at very low levels. The AEMET. In his special prediction For these important dates, the meteorology agency indicates that this Friday the 2nd the rains will reach the Canary Islands and to the west of the peninsula. But it will be on January 3 when rainfall will be very abundant in western Andalusia, with snowfall at low levels in the north. But the truly interesting thing is between Sunday, January 4 and Tuesday, January 6, Three Kings’ Day, where heavy and persistent rains are expected in the south and east of the Peninsula. The highlight may be the snowfall in the eastern and central part of the peninsula, which the AEMET points out that can be important with a large drop in temperatures. Arrival of unusual snowfall. The “postcard” of Three Kings with snow is plausible in a good part of the country, although highly conditioned by the orography and some details of Francis’ career. In the south, for example, AEMET and local media report a drop in the snow level of up to 400 m in provinces like Granada either Malagawith minimums below 5 °C in capitals and negative values ​​in the interior, which opens the door to snowfall in areas where they are uncommon. In the center and east of the peninsula, the coldest scenarios place the level around 400–500 meters during January 4 and 5 and snow at medium or low levels in the southeastern quadrant, eastern Iberia, the east of the southern plateau or the Baetics; In the north and northwest, the posterior maritime polar mass keeps the snow in the mountains and could leave significant accumulations in systems such as the Montes de León. The American GFS model has come to propose for the Three Kings Day environment snow accumulations of more than 30 cm in the province of Toledo and greater than 40 cm in areas of Teruel, in a scenario of very extensive snowfall that inevitably reminds us of Filomena. A new Philomena? It’s an almost obligatory question. with the arrival of this storm, and although there are voices that affirm that we are going to face that, experts ask for caution to see how the predictions develop as the days go by. And the difference between a historic snowfall and an episode of cold rain depends on just a few kilometers in Francis’ trajectory. In this way, if the storm drops in latitude, cold air will dominate and snow could cover Madrid, the center of the peninsula or Granada. But if the storm moves north, the warm mass would win the battles and the snow would be restricted to mountain areas and medium elevations. Everything will depend on how the prediction develops in the coming days. The danger for horseback riding. With this forecast that we have on the table right now, the truth is that the cavalcades may have problems making their usual routes. Although it must be taken into account that these forecasts may change, not being truly 100% reliable until a few days before these dates arrive. After Three Kings Day. Once these dates pass, temperatures will begin to increase substantially. This way, starting January 6th Precipitation is expected to begin to lose intensity and extent in the southern areas, although it could still be locally strong in the Strait, while snowfall remains in the more mountainous areas. Images | AEMET In Xataka | La Niña is going to be meteorologically “less intense” than we expected. And that actually hides a problem.

He has fitted winter tires to use it as a snow plow.

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While many drivers in Spain stay stuck on mountain roads Every winter, as a few centimeters of snow fall due to driving cars that are not prepared for those conditions, the CEO of Bugatti wanted to offer a winter driving lesson most unexpected. Mate Rimac, 37-year-old Croatian businessman supercar enthusiast that it manufactures, has recently shared on its social networks a video which shows something completely surprising: he prefers to drive a Bugatti Tourbillon of 4 million euros in heavy snow conditions. This is not an impulsive act, but rather a rigorous testing program that seeks to validate the behavior of the exclusive Bugatti supercar in extreme situations in the real world. The first Bugatti “snowplow” The contrast with what we usually see on Spanish roads with the first snowfalls of the season is disconcerting. While many drivers with front-wheel drive SUVs equipped with summer tires end up trapped for not being able to circulate With a few centimeters of snow, the CEO of Bugatti shows that the problem is not the type of vehicle, but the preparation of the vehicle with the correct equipment to face these adverse weather conditions. In it video posted on your profile From Instagram, Rimac presents two options for driving in snow storms: a properly prepared Jeep Wrangler and a Bugatti Tourbillon. The CEO’s choice of the French supercar, instead of the specifically designed 4×4 vehicle for difficult terrainhighlights a fundamental truth about winter driving. Tap on the image to go to the original content As revealed by the “VP1” callsign on its side, the Bugatti Tourbillon that Rimac drives is the first unit that circulates freely on open roads, with a power of 1,800 HP and a price of 4 million dollars. Rimac explains in his video that the Tourbillon is equipped with winter tires of the correct quality, and this is precisely the determining factor that is missing from the majority of Spanish drivers who get stuck on the roads and mountain passes with the first snowfalls. According to the businessman, the winter tires provide enough grip to control the 1,800 HP delivered by this exclusive asphalt beast, keeping them under control even under snow conditions and with a rolling surface as wide as the one they offer Tourbillon wheels. The irony is that a vehicle so extremely expensive and with such enormous power be more manageable in winter than a conventional SUV poorly equipped. A training program for supercars Rimac and the Tourbillon’s adventure on snowy roads is not simply a display of Bugatti’s automotive bravado. The CEO explained that the objective is thoroughly test the Tourbillon in all possible real-world driving conditions over the next two years. In this way, the Bugatti team aims to obtain data on its behavior and draw conclusions that allow it to improve its configuration with data that goes beyond that obtained in conventional test benches. The CEO assured that “five years of hard work to get the Tourbillon from a blank page to a road test” has led to them now examining the vehicle’s behavior in real scenarios. During these driving tests, Rimac travels accompanied by a technician who monitors the car’s telemetry in real time, collecting valuable data on how the hypercar responds to extreme winter conditions. The CEO noted that “we have been testing it on various tracks and test facilities for two years, but road testing in real conditions is another matter.” The manager has also taken advantage of the opportunity to test the Rimac Refrigeratorthe electric supercar of the brand he foundedunder the same conditions of driving on snow. A luxury convoy that you surely did not expect to find in a mountain pass after a snowfall. In Xataka | If you have four million euros you are very lucky in life, but you will not have the new Bugatti Image | Mate Rimac

Snow is one of the few things that can delay the Shinkansen in Japan. To combat it there is a solution as simple as it is effective.

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Japanese bullet trains are known for their extreme punctuality. However, when the snow appears, neither the most cutting-edge railway system of the world is saved. And to combat it, the country’s railway institutions developed a solution as simple as it was ingenious: sprinklers installed along the tracks that spray water during snowfall. This is done to prevent snow from accumulating and wreaking havoc on the trains. We explain in detail how these systems work. Why is it important. Snow not only causes the system to stop being as punctual as usual, but it can also cause serious damage to high-speed trains. And at speeds above 200 km/h, the snow on the ground rises due to the air current generated by the train, which can cause it to compact under the cars forming ice balls that, upon impact with the ground, throw gravel into the air. This can end up breaking windows and damaging train components if left untreated. Japan has spent decades perfecting systems to eliminate this problem without sacrificing speed or punctuality. The origin of the problem. When the Shinkansen began regular operations in 1964, according to explains JR Tokai (the operating company of the Tokaido Shinkansen), construction was carried out in a hurry and “there was not enough time to consider” alternative routes that would avoid areas of heavy snowfall. In January 1965, just three months after launch, snowfall in the Sekigahara region caused serious incidentsincluding broken windows and shattered water tanks. The investigation revealed that the real culprit was speed, since the wind generated raised the snow, which ended up turning into ice projectiles under the carriages. The solution: sprinklers. To prevent the snow from rising and forming those dangerous ice balls, it was installed a sprinkler system along the tracks that sprays water during snowfall. There are currently sprinklers deployed in a stretch of more than 70 kilometers, covering the lines most affected by the snow. In 2009, the nozzles were improved so that the water reached areas that were not reached before, melting the snow more effectively. The system does not completely remove snow, but changes its consistency to prevent it from compacting and flying, thus reducing the risk of damage. It is not the only solution. The water system is complemented by other resources. During non-service hours, snow plows work at dawn to remove accumulated snow. Since 2003, rotary snow plows have been used that use rotating brushes capable of cleaning up to five centimeters below the surface of the rails. In addition, since 2013, devices with optical sensors have been used to monitor weather conditions, and there are cameras installed under the carriages to detect snow accumulations. When a snow-covered train arrives at stations like Nagoya or Osaka, there are also specialized teams waiting under the platforms with high-pressure washers to quickly remove stuck-on snow. The results speak. All of this operation has radically transformed the Shinkansen’s defenses when the snow arrives. According to JR Tokaiin 1976 there were 635 train cancellations due to snow, a figure that has been reduced to zero since 1994. The average delay due to snowfall has also improved dramatically, dropping to just a few minutes. Beyond the trains. In the northern regions of Japan, where snowfall can exceed three meters, many roads have sprinklers integrated into the asphalt. The system, known as ‘shosetsu’ (disappearing snow) or ‘yuusetsu’ (melting snow), was developed in 1961 in the city of Nagaoka by Yosaburo Imai, founder of a century-old confectionery. Imai was inspired by observing that snow did not accumulate where thermal water gushed from underground. Since then, underground pipes transport geothermal water (at about 13-14°C) to pavement sprinklers that melt snow during winter storms, avoiding the use of salt or snow blowers. Cover image | KUA YUE In Xataka | The straightest road in Spain is located in a place whose name I don’t want to remember: between El Provencio and La Roda

AEMET confirms a collapse and snow at 1,000 meters to start Christmas

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If you thought you had too much of a coat this week, now you’re going to have to think twice. After a few marked days due to unusually mild temperatures for mid-Decemberthe weather is going to change radically with the arrival of the peak days of Christmas. A thermal collapse. So far, the month of December has seen some really warm days where you could easily be out in the sun without a jacket. This is something that has been seen especially in parts of the Mediterranean, Almería and even in the Cantabrian Sea with thermometers that have reached to touch 20 degrees. However, it already has an expiration date. Starting on December 21, coinciding with the official start of astronomical winter, a notable thermal drop is expected. According to AEMET itself This change will not be gradual, but will feel like a drastic collapse in thermometers by this polar jet that arrives from the north that will leave minimum temperatures in the negative and that in general will cause a thermal drop of 3-5ºC. Precipitation map for Sunday, December 21 | Source: AEMET Rain and snow. Before the great drop in temperatures, we will see abundant rains in our territory due to the entry of a new front from the Atlantic. This will mean that this weekend we will see abundant rain in a good part of the peninsula, with special emphasis on northern Spain where significant storms are expected for next Sunday. The Galician coasts are where we will have to keep a close eye, as these precipitations will be accompanied by very strong gusts of wind, which will lead to the appearance of waves that can exceed seven meters in height. Appearance of snow. With the drop in temperature, rain can end up turning into snow in part of the peninsula. In this case, the snow level is expected to drop to 1,000-1,200 meters in the northern third. The most affected areas They will be the communities of Galicia, Asturias, Cantabria, La Rioja, Castilla y León, the Community of Madrid and Castilla – La Mancha. This is bad news, except for lovers of a Christmas under a layer of white. And just this weekend a new operation begins, coinciding with the start of the Christmas holidays. This is something that can cause significant traffic delays in the northern third of the country. Christmas week. We already have Christmas Eve almost here, and there are many eyes on to the weather forecast. For now, the progress that the AEMET has given us after the front on the 21st is that we will have a cold environment with significant night frosts across the peninsula and widespread, although not extreme, rainfall, which will be present especially in the south of the peninsula. But this is something that will not affect the Canary Islands, which will maintain stable weather and normal conditions for the time in which we find ourselves. An extreme change. There is a climate prediction coming from Europe that sees a much more extreme and unusual scenario that may or may not occur. Specifically, the ECMWF points out that there may be heavy snowfall in the province of Seville, Huelva and the south of Badajos on Christmas Eve. This would be something historic, since snow is a strange event to see in Seville, where there has not been a solid snowfall since 1954. That is why this European prediction is really crazy, which logically can change as the days go by, leaving the chances of snow in Seville a disappointment, despite the fact that the low temperatures are going to continue. Images | Osman Ran In Xataka | Lightning seems like a normal thing: in reality we have been trying to understand it for years and we have achieved it in a laboratory

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