What was the thickest layer of snow in Romania in the last 15 years and when it was -21 degrees Celsius in Bucharest in January
Winter landscape at Balea Lac (photo source Gabirosca, Dreamstime.com)
These days are the coldest since the beginning of winter, there will also be temperatures below -20 degrees and the snow layer is more than 1.5 meters thick in the mountains. ANM has published several records of cold and snow cover for the month of January in Romania in recent years. When was there 63 cm of snow in Bucharest? Where was -34 degrees in 2015?
January snowpack records
The highest layer of snow measured in January anywhere in Romania in recent years was 2.5 meters at Bâlea Lac, in 2019 and 2021. Five years ago, the snowfall was so heavy in the Făgăraș mountains that a new layer of 70 cm thickness was deposited in less than a day, the ANM write.
In 2019, there was a snow cover of 229 cm at the Cuntu mountain weather station, in the Țarcu mountains in the west of the country, at over 1,400 m alt.
In the years when it snowed much less in the first month of the year, the snow layer at Bâlea Lac did not exceed 110 cm.
For plain areas, the record is from the first month of 2010 (snow layer over 70 cm thick in the northern half of Constanța county) and from 2019 (northern Moldova, Bârnova radar, close to Iasi).
The record for Bucharest is from January 11, 2017: a layer of snow 63 cm thick at the Filaret weather station.
Bâlea Lac is generally the thickest layer of snow in Romania in the first weeks of the year, but in 2026 it is the other way around: Omu 155 cm, Bâlea Lac 111 cm.
The coldest nights of January
The difference between the warmest January in the last 15 years and the coldest was huge. The country average was +3.3 C in January 2023 and -5.9 C in January 2017.
The lowest temperature measured in the last 15 years in January in Romania was -34.6 C at Intorsura Buzăului, in 2015. Also then, a super-low maximum was recorded at Baraolt: -15.1 C.
Nine years ago there were minimums of -32 C at the Buzău turn, -29.2 degrees at Omu and -21.7 C at Bucharest Băneasa. The turn of the Buzău had several times lows close to -30 degrees Celsius in the last 15 years.
Also in January 2017, there were also extremely low daytime highs, worthy of the winters of the 80s: -15.9 degrees in Baraolt, -10.2 degrees in Bucharest Afumați and -23.1 degrees in Vf. Omu, also show the ANM data for the first month of the year.
On Wednesday, Ciuc had several times maximums below -13, -14 degrees Celsius.
In the warmest month of January, three years ago, the temperatures did not drop below -17 C in Omu, -12 C in Miercurea Ciuc, nor below -4 C in Bucharest for 31 days.
Photo source: Dreamstime.com
