While summer is in full swing in the northern hemisphere with high temperatures, especially in Europe, it is winter in the southern hemisphere. A mass of polar air has caused record temperatures in Argentina, Chile and Uruguay, causing at least 15 dead.
The three countries of South America have all recorded temperatures significantly lower than zero, While the polar air came from Antarctica and swept the region.
The capital Buenos Aires recorded its lowest temperature since 1991or -1.9 degrees, while the coastal city of Miramar saw snow falling for the first time in 34 years. Further south, the city of Maquinchao recorded -18 degrees on Tuesday.
Fig. 1: Snow in Miramar, a first since 1991; Source: @Phipperopaoli on Tiktok
Desert snow
Montevideo, in Uruguay, recorded his the lowest maximum temperature since 1967 at 5.8 degrees on June 30.
In Chile, the city of Chillan, 400 kilometers south of Santiago, recorded -9.3 degrees.
A mass of polar air from Antarctica is at the origin of this outdoor cold wave, one of the strongest in the last 50 years.
Snow even fell into certain parts of the Atacama desertthe driest in the world, for the first time in a decade.
Softer forecasts
The region expects an improvement in the coming days, with temperatures reaching 12 degrees in Buenos Aires, 14 degrees in Montevideo and 25 degrees in Santiago.
Despite this very cold episode, Heat waves have become more frequent than cold waves In recent years. The frequency of heat waves has tripled, whether in summer or winter in this part of the world.
