In the first ten days of February 2017, Ukraine demonstrated significant variances in air temperature, due to the influence of different meteorological processes. In the second half of the reporting period, the anticyclone from the north influenced the weather conditions in most oblasts, which resulted in development of very cold weather, especially in the north-eastern part of the country.
In southern and western oblasts, there were observed heavy snowfalls, blizzards, snowdrifts, etc., due to the impact of the cyclone from the southwest.
During the ten-day period, the territory of Ukraine faced fogs, glaze ice, ice-crusted ground, etc. There were precipitations in the form of snow and rain in the south and south-west, and in the form of snow in the remaining regions. In some oblasts, there were icy rains.
The general capacity of precipitations in the north-western part of Ukraine significantly exceeded the standard for early February, but in the eastern and southern parts of the country the level of precipitations varied within or below the standard.
In southern and western oblasts (except for Zakarpattia oblast), the average air temperature varied within the average regional range of -3…-6°C, down 1-2° compared with the standard; in the extreme southern raions of Odessa oblast - -0.5…1.5°C, which was rather standard level. In the remaining territory of the country, the average temperature varied within -6.5…-11.5°C, down 2-4° compared with the standard. In Zakarpattia oblast, the average air temperature reached +1…2.5°C, up 2.5-4.5°.
In the coolest nights, the minimum air temperature decreased to -16…-21°C, but in northern oblasts, Vinnytsia, Dnipropetrovsk, Luhansk, Kharkiv and Sumy oblasts the minimum indices reached -22…-27°C. But in Zakarpattia oblast, the lowest temperature figures totaled -1…-6°C.
In the warmest days, the maximum air temperature reached +0…4°C, but in southern, Ivano-Frankivsk and Zakarpattia oblasts the maximum temperatures grew to +5…10°C, and in the south of Odessa oblast +11…12°C.
In the coldest nights, the soil or snow surface temperature decreased to -19…-27°C, but in northern oblasts, Sumy, Kharkiv, Luhansk, Volyn, Rivne, Khmelnytskyi and Vinnytsia oblasts the index totaled -28…-33C°, and in Zakarpattia oblast - -1…-8°C.
Ukraine faced precipitations in the form of snow and sleet for 1-8 days throughout the whole territory of the country. In western oblasts, Chernihiv, Sumy, Kirovohrad, Zaporizhia and Luhansk oblasts the average level of precipitations varied at 127-190% of the standard (14-26 mm, in Zakarpattia oblast – 43 mm), but in Zhytomyr, Kiev, Vinnytsia and Cherkasy oblasts - 210-300% of the standard (21-29 mm). In the other oblasts, the average level of precipitations varied within the standard (8-14 mm). Also, in mountainous raions of the Carpathians the figures reached 50-122 mm.
Relative humidity of the air in the country varied within the range of 72-94%.
As of February 10, the snow cover depth at 1-10 cm was observed throughout the territory of southern oblasts, Donetsk, Luhansk oblasts, some raions of Cherkasy, Dnipropetrovsk, Ivano-Frankivsk, Lviv and Zakarpattia oblasts. At the same time, in some raions of Odessa, Mykolaiv, Kherson, Zaporizhia, and Zakarpattia oblasts there was no snow covering at fields at all. Also, in the remaining oblasts the indices mainly varied within 11-30 cm. In some raions of Volyn, Sumy and Kharkiv oblasts the snow cover depth reached 31-41 cm, and in and the Carpathian mountains – 65-86 cm.
At the end of the ten-day period, the depth of soil freezing varied within 11-50 cm, and in some raions of Kherson, Zaporizhia, Dnipropetrovsk, Poltava, Cherkasy, Kiev and Khmelnytskyi oblasts the index reached 51-78 cm.
During 1-5 days, there was observed some strengthening of wind velocity throughout the territory of southern oblasts, Donetsk, Dnipropetrovsk and Rivne oblasts to 15-28 m/s.
Precipitations increased the snow cover depth throughout almost the whole territory of the country (except for Donetsk, Dnipropetrovsk and Zakarpattia oblasts), which was favorable for crop protection in terms of rather low air and soil temperatures.
So, in Odessa, Mykolaiv, Kherson and Zaporizhia oblasts there was very little snow covering or even its absence in the fields, therefore in some raions of the reporting oblasts the minimum soil temperature at the depth of 3 cm reduced to -10…-15°C, while the average index throughout the remaining oblasts totaled -4…-9°.
In many raions, crop fields faced ice crust processes. The weather conditions contributed to formation of ice new crust areas in the north-eastern and southern regions.
The weather conditions for further overwintering processes in February 2017 in Ukraine will be satisfactory.
According to data of the Ukrainian Hydrometeorological Center
