Russian meteorological stations have forecast that this winter will be the coldest in a hundred years.
German weather forecasters agree with their Russian counterparts, saying that temperatures will dive in the next two months in Europe as a result of Arctic air fronts coming toward the continent. Analysts had expected the northern region of the Kingdom and the Levant to witness snowstorms earlier this year, creating a frenzy on social media sites.
However, Saudi astronomer Khalid Al-Zaaq does not agree with these forecasts. “The rumors circulating on social networking sites are not true and have no scientific basis.”
He said that climate cycles run for 75 years. “Changes in weather conditions do not exceed this time period,” he argued.
He dismissed the notion, adding that the original source of this data, the Russian Meteorological Organization, is not credible.
“It is true that the area will witness a cold winter,” said Al-Zaaq, “and that temperature levels will drop dramatically, but this is common and has happened in the past.”
A study conducted by the weather staff at ArabiaWeather on the data available ahead of this winter season, suggests the possibility of a very cold winter on the European, Asian and North American continents.
This idea is based on the expanding area of ice in the Arctic region by more than 60 percent compared to its size in the same period in 2012.
Another factor that endorses these forecasts is the sun’s position in its cycle. It reached minimum levels of its cycle during the forties and fifties of the past century. The sun gained pace until the beginning of this century, when it began to decrease. Cold fronts of snow and frost accompanied this change. These hit Europe, North America and Asia, including the Levant and the north of Saudi Arabia.
Al-Zaaq maintains, nevertheless, that linking such long-term weather forecasts in Russia and Germany with weather forecasts in the area has no scientific basis.
Astronomer dismisses Western forecasts of severe Saudi winter
