- Title: Moscow wonders where winter has gone as temperatures hit 133-year high
- Date: 18th December 2019
- Summary: MOSCOW, RUSSIA (DECEMBER 18, 2019) (REUTERS) WINTER DECORATION / GREEN GRASS / KREMLIN IN BACKGROUND VARIOUS OF WATER DROPS ON PLANTS VARIOUS OF KREMLIN / GREEN GRASS VARIOUS OF CHRISTMAS TREES NEAR KREMLIN (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) FOBOS WEATHER CENTER SPECIALIST, ELENA VOLOSYUK, SAYING: "The temperature is not winterish at all, it is more common for mid-autumn. This year the temperature in December is 5.5 C warmer than the average, which is a lot." VARIOUS OF "MOSCOW CITY" BUSINESS CENTRE IN CLOUDS AND MIST (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) FOBOS WEATHER CENTER SPECIALIST, ELENA VOLOSYUK, SAYING: "The maximum temperature record can possibly be set. The historical temperature maximum ever registered for December 18 and 19 is +5.3 C. This value was recorded on December 18, 1886, back in the century before last." GREEN PLANTS IN MOSCOW BOTANICAL GARDEN VARIOUS OF WOMEN TAKING PHOTOGRAPHS OF PLANTS VARIOUS OF RED BERRY VARIOUS OF FLOWERS AMONG FALLEN LEAVES (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) MOSCOW STATE UNIVERSITY'S APOTHECARY GARDEN HEAD GARDENER, ANTON DUBENYUK, SAYING: "The plants were deceived by this (warm weather) and decided it is spring already, so they are in bloom. These flowers will certainly not survive when the cold comes. So there will be no spring blossom." VARIOUS OF FLOWERS AND LEAF BUDS (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) MOSCOW RESIDENT, PENSIONER, LYUDMILA BIRYUKOVA, SAYING: "I was born here and have lived here my whole life. We are used to real winters. This is not our winter, it came from somewhere else." VARIOUS OF RAINDROPS FALLING ON SURFACE OF WATER PEOPLE WALKING WITH UMBRELLAS VARIOUS OF PEOPLE POSING FOR PHOTOGRAPHS / KREMLIN VIEW (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) MOSCOW RESIDENT, LIDIYA (NO LAST NAME GIVEN), SAYING: "I am used to Moscow weather, it is full of surprises. You still have to get by, so here I am - walking, breathing this autumn air, look, there are lots of pipes with smoke coming out, and it still feels good. The views are beautiful, the Kremlin, the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, just stunning." VARIOUS OF CATHEDRAL OF CHRIST THE SAVIOUR (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) NOVOSIBIRSK RESIDENT, OLEG (NO LAST NAME GIVEN), SAYING: "We are from Siberia, the weather is a little different there now. There is no extreme frost there either, just about minus 15 C, I think it feels better, especially at winter. As for Moscow, (the weather) is not the best, right? But I think Moscow is always beautiful, regardless of weather." MOSCOW, RUSSIA (DECEMBER 14, 2019) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF EVENING CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS / KREMLIN VARIOUS OF CHILDREN RIDING CAROUSEL VARIOUS OF PEOPLE AT CHRISTMAS MARKET CHRISTMAS TREES / TRAFFIC VARIOUS OF CHRISTMAS DECORATION / BOLSHOI THEATRE
- Embargoed: 1st January 2020 16:18
- Keywords: Moscow New Year decorations voxpop warm weather warm winter weather record
- Location: MOSCOW, RUSSIA
- City: MOSCOW, RUSSIA
- Country: Russia
- Topics: Living / Lifestyle,Society/Social Issues
- Reuters ID: LVA001BAI76T5
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Residents of Moscow are wondering where winter has gone as the highest December temperatures for 133 years deprive the Russian capital of its customary covering of snow.
"This is not our winter," said pensioner Ludmila Biryukova. "It came from somewhere else."
At a time when snow often blankets the streets and icicles hang from buildings, the temperature in Moscow is expected to reach 6 Celsius (42.8 Fahrenheit) overnight on Wednesday, according to Elena Vosolyuk of the FOBOS weather center.
The last time Moscow was warmer than 5.3 C on Dec. 18 was in 1886, she said. The usual air temperature for Dec. 18 is minus 6.2 C, according to Russia's Hydrometeorological Research Centre.
The unseasonable warmth has been brought by an atmospheric front from the Atlantic Ocean, and rain, not snow, is forecast for the New Year holiday, Russia's main festive celebration.
And it's not just people who have been surprised. At Moscow State University's Apothecary Garden, snowdrops and rhododendron are among flowers that have mistaken the soft soil for the early onset of spring.
"The plants were deceived by this (warm weather) and decided it is spring already, so they are in bloom," said head gardener Anton Dubenyuk, warning that could mean less colour later.
"These flowers will certainly not survive when the cold comes. So there will be no spring blossom," he said.
Biryukova, who was walking in the Apothecary Garden, said: "I was born here and have lived here my whole life. We are used to real winters."
(Production: Dmitry Madorsky, Mikhail Antonov, Gennadiy Novik, Dmitry Turlyun) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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