Earth is a planet full of contrasts. Some places are hot and dry most of the year, while others are ice-capped and snow-covered. However, despite extremely cold or hot temperatures, people find ways to inhabit such regions. In this article, we will visit the coldest places in the world and see if people live there.
As you can guess, the coldest place on Earth is Antarctica. In 1983, a temperature of -89.2℃ was recorded here. The measurements were made at the Soviet scientific station Vostok. Such an extreme climate severely limits the lives of visiting explorers and researchers. Productive work lasts only a few months a year and there are no permanent residents.
The warmest month in Vostok is December. The air warms up to -30℃ then. There was even a record high temperature of -12.2℃ recorded in 2002. The coldest period is in August – temperatures then reach about 70℃ below zero.
Another kingdom of ice and cold on our planet is Greenland. In 1930, the expedition of geophysicist Alfred Wegener established the Eismitte polar station here. Conditions were so difficult that blocks of snow were used to build the base. Later that year, scientists managed to record a temperature of -65℃. In summer, the air here typically warms to -12℃, and cools to -50℃ in winter. The extremely harsh conditions do not encourage people to live here permanently – even the expedition mentioned above was cut short by a year. Many members suffered frostbite, and Wegener himself died from hypothermia.
The village of Oymyakon in Russia’s Yakutia is one of the most notoriously frigid places, yet inhabited, with a population of around 500 people. Officially, the lowest temperature was recorded in 1933 and was -67.7℃. However, according to unofficial data, in 1938 this record was broken and the frost reached -77.8℃. Interestingly, it is quite hot in Ojmiakon in summer. In 2010, a temperature of 34.6℃ above zero was recorded.
There is also another village in Yakutia whose inhabitants can perfectly cope with low temperatures and frost. Verkhoyansk is the main rival of Oymyakon for the title of “frost pole”, but according to the data it is warmer by several tenths of a degree. Here, too, summers are warm with temperatures as high as 37.3℃, but there is very little precipitation in the region. The difficult conditions do not bother the locals, who are twice as numerous as in Oymiakon.
The small Canadian town of Snag is famous for the fact that in 1947 the air here cooled down to -63℃. Scientists even had to extend the scale of a thermometer to make the measurement. The temperature recorded at the time was the lowest in North America.
At that time, the village had a total of 10 indigenous residents and 4 merchants. Additional personnel included 20 military airport employees, including meteorologists, radio operators, and technicians. All were supported by the existence of the airport, and its closure in 1968 led to the depopulation of the village.
Prospect Creek is considered the coldest place in the United States – the record low temperature was -62℃. The village was established in 1974 as a camp for 27,000 Trans-Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS) construction workers. After construction was completed, everyone left the village and to this day, no one lives there.
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