Summer and Winter in Early September Are a Very Rare Opposite Seasons Combination; Western Julian Alps, FVG, Italia
13-September-2024
A whole day after the "summer snowstorm", summer and winter are still clearly evident on the Julian Alps: here we see all the main chain of Mount Canin (2587m a.s.l., see notes!), seen from the North by the Montasio Plateau/Plains (1550m here), where there is No sign of autumn yet.
An Arctic front has completely overturned the summer, reaching a winter tasting.
In the internal areas of the Julian Alps, both in Italy and in Slovenia, in the night between 12 and 13 September, the snow dropped up to whitewashing the valley floors of the Tarvisio Area and those of the Upper Valley of the Sava River catchment, down to just 700m a.s.l., then a very rare situation in the first half of September.
The overheating of air, land and sea, following the opressively hot summer 2024, which in Tarvisio town was the hottest ever recorded by local weather stations, made the contrast with the wedge of cold air of arctic origin of extreme intensity.
Very strong winds and alluvial rains have affected the entire area I follow, while the collapse of the temperature at altitude, combined with the drag of the freezing point (thermal 0°C limit) made by the intense rain/snowfall, led the snow to go down to the internal valleys of the Julian Alps for a few hours, whitening them, as really rare in this period.
For this reason, more than autumn, we can speak of a short winter phase, given that the snowfall average limit in the winter season is around 500-700m in these areas.
Affected by abundant snowfalls at almost winter altitudes were also the Carnic Alps, the Karavanke and the Kamnik and Savinja Alps, all between Italy, Slovenia and Austria, where the coldest nucleus of the front had positioned that night.
Summer and Winter in Early September Are a Very Rare Opposite Seasons Combination; Western Julian Alps, FVG, Italia
13-September-2024
A whole day after the "summer snowstorm", summer and winter are still clearly evident on the Julian Alps: here we see all the main chain of Mount Canin (2587m a.s.l., see notes!), seen from the North by the Montasio Plateau/Plains (1550m here), where there is No sign of autumn yet.
An Arctic front has completely overturned the summer, reaching a winter tasting.
In the internal areas of the Julian Alps, both in Italy and in Slovenia, in the night between 12 and 13 September, the snow dropped up to whitewashing the valley floors of the Tarvisio Area and those of the Upper Valley of the Sava River catchment, down to just 700m a.s.l., then a very rare situation in the first half of September.
The overheating of air, land and sea, following the opressively hot summer 2024, which in Tarvisio town was the hottest ever recorded by local weather stations, made the contrast with the wedge of cold air of arctic origin of extreme intensity.
Very strong winds and alluvial rains have affected the entire area I follow, while the collapse of the temperature at altitude, combined with the drag of the freezing point (thermal 0°C limit) made by the intense rain/snowfall, led the snow to go down to the internal valleys of the Julian Alps for a few hours, whitening them, as really rare in this period.
For this reason, more than autumn, we can speak of a short winter phase, given that the snowfall average limit in the winter season is around 500-700m in these areas.
Affected by abundant snowfalls at almost winter altitudes were also the Carnic Alps, the Karavanke and the Kamnik and Savinja Alps, all between Italy, Slovenia and Austria, where the coldest nucleus of the front had positioned that night.