We have a saying in Scandinavia: "There's no bad weather, only bad kleather (clothes)" :)
Visit us in summer in Australia, when in some of the cities the temperature during the day often exceeds human body temperature. There's only so many clothes you can remove :)
What it’s like living in the coldest town on Earth
51–60 of 93 posts
Re: What it’s like living in the coldest town on Earth
#52I live in Whitehorse, Yukon. Last week it was -37C for a few days, I rode my bike/walked to work every day. I've been out Caribou hunting in -48C snowshoeing around right near the Arctic Circle. Snag is just down the road, where it was once -63.9C (-83F) - the coldest temp ever recorded in North America.[1] I'm originally from Australia, so this kind of thing is Alien to me, and I think I do a decent job of explainin…
Do you have engine block heaters in cars in Yukon? In Scandinavia we have electric heaters installed to engine blocks for people who keep their cars outside. The heaters are typically in the 500 W range and keeping it on for an hour before starting up the car in the morning makes the starting a lot easier. We also have cabin heaters for cars (typically in the 1000 W range) but they are more for the convenience (but a…
I live in Alberta (south of Yukon) and it's the law here that all new vehicles be sold with a block heater. I imagine it's the same there. We don't see -60 usually, but -40 once or twice a year is normal.
Re: What it’s like living in the coldest town on Earth
#53Earlier quoted context omitted.
Block heaters in cars are not effective in extremely cold temperatures. They keep the oil warm, but the battery still gets too cold to crank. In college, I used to remove my car battery from my car and store it on my kitchen floor at night so I could start the car in the morning. Cameras will suffer similar issues. Lithium Ion batteries are only rated down to -20degC. Below that, the internal impedance of the battery…
In my anecdotal experience, a standard compact camera battery, also Li Ion, works quite poorly on a ski slope at -5 to -10C. Battery life was less than a third of usual for several days running, despite a full charge each night.
as a side note, you can put the battery back in your pocket with a hand warmer, and it comes back to life. I tend to do this on cold days with my phone also, so that the batteries stay warm in case I need to use them.
Re: What it’s like living in the coldest town on Earth
#54>ymyakon earned its title as the coldest place on Earth when the mercury plunged to -90. Mercury doesn't plunge to -90 (C or F) because mercury has a melting point at -37.9 °F or -38.8 °C. This is a fairly common fallacy from people who aren't thinking through. Thermometers used in cold places usually have coloured alcohol as liquid, not mercury. I think most Western countries have actually got rid of mercury thermom…
Relax, it's just a figure of speech.
Re: What it’s like living in the coldest town on Earth
#55> people here regularly consume frozen meat Unless they eat it while it's still frozen, why is this noteworthy? Also: > Most people use outhouses, because indoor plumbing tends to freeze. This is due to their poverty, not the cold. If it was just cold there, as opposed to cold and impoverished, they could either keep water constantly running through the pipes, or, if that won't work, insulate them better, possibly wi…
>> people here regularly consume frozen meat
>Unless they eat it while it's still frozen, why is this noteworthy?
eating frozen meat is a lifestyle detail there. Note - it is high fat meat (or fatty fish) which doesn't become firm hard brick like lean meat would. Also there is no mentioning of vodka(diluted ethanol) which goes very well (and i'd suspect - just from my gut (i mean real gut :) feeling helps to digest) with those fat meat/fish slices.
Re: What it’s like living in the coldest town on Earth
#56Earlier quoted context omitted.
Do you have engine block heaters in cars in Yukon? In Scandinavia we have electric heaters installed to engine blocks for people who keep their cars outside. The heaters are typically in the 500 W range and keeping it on for an hour before starting up the car in the morning makes the starting a lot easier. We also have cabin heaters for cars (typically in the 1000 W range) but they are more for the convenience (but a…
I live in Alberta (south of Yukon) and it's the law here that all new vehicles be sold with a block heater. I imagine it's the same there. We don't see -60 usually, but -40 once or twice a year is normal.
Cool (sic). We don't have them mandatory in new cars - presumably because it would be a trade barrier within EU to require them only here, and we're too small to force the Mediterranians have them.
[edit] BTW there is a legend here that in Siberia people actually keep a fire under engines to warm it up. I even found a photograph of lorries to support this: http://www.marxists.org/history/ussr/art/photography/workers...
Not sure if I would do it with gasoline engines. With diesel engines it's quite understandable, particularly if you have summer-grade diesel fuel that starts to congeal in -15C.
Re: What it’s like living in the coldest town on Earth
#57> people here regularly consume frozen meat Unless they eat it while it's still frozen, why is this noteworthy? Also: > Most people use outhouses, because indoor plumbing tends to freeze. This is due to their poverty, not the cold. If it was just cold there, as opposed to cold and impoverished, they could either keep water constantly running through the pipes, or, if that won't work, insulate them better, possibly wi…
>> Most people use outhouses, because indoor plumbing tends to freeze.
> This is due to their poverty, not the cold. If it was just cold there, as opposed to cold and impoverished, they could either keep water constantly running through the pipes, or, if that won't work, insulate them better, possibly with heating coils.
Outhouses are common in Alaska (outside of cities) as well, and it isn't exactly "poverty", but it is a significant cost to keep pipes from freezing.
Re: What it’s like living in the coldest town on Earth
#58> people here regularly consume frozen meat Unless they eat it while it's still frozen, why is this noteworthy? Also: > Most people use outhouses, because indoor plumbing tends to freeze. This is due to their poverty, not the cold. If it was just cold there, as opposed to cold and impoverished, they could either keep water constantly running through the pipes, or, if that won't work, insulate them better, possibly wi…
> > Most people use outhouses, because indoor plumbing tends to freeze.
> This is due to their poverty, not the cold.
I'm more worried about the physiologic consequences of exposing, um, private parts to minus a bajillion degrees. I'm pretty sure you have to finish in a couple minutes, max, or else all sorts of really bad things will happen.
Re: What it’s like living in the coldest town on Earth
#59I went to University in Fairbanks, AK. It's a pretty unique place, probably one of the largest population centers where it routinely goes below -50F. Practical things I've learned:
1. Running outside is pretty comfortable with the proper equipment until about -20F, but is possible down to around -40s as long as you wrap something around your face and/or have clothing to "pre-warm" your air. At around -60F breathing deeply (and not into your coat) becomes painful and dangerous.
2. Metal "burns" and blisters your hands from -20F and below. The fast transfer of heat from your hands from things like snow can make them numb and inoperable in seconds.
3. The triple combination of battery blanket/oil pan heater/block heater is usually winning, but nothing beats a garage. The worst part about living off campus was walking a half mile from class AND THEN sitting in your car for 15 minutes waiting for it to become drivable.
4. It's amazing what humans can adapt to. If it was a 5 minute walk I would usually just have a big and avoid the time-consuming, but best way to stay warm (parka + layering). Also I'd usually wear jeans. When it would bump up to 20F people would be wearing shorts outside.
(From comments) - We have never had problems (I was only there six years, anecdotal) with weather interfering with internet/cell service. Some jack-ass clipped a fiber cable once, but that's all I can remember. (From comments) - A lot of our buildings go 2-3 floors underground. We still have tunnels linking buildings together, but they are no longer accessible by the students.
As far as work goes the pipeline runs through Fairbanks, but the main centers of employment I saw were the University and the Military Base.
Re: What it’s like living in the coldest town on Earth
#60Earlier quoted context omitted.
I live in Alberta (south of Yukon) and it's the law here that all new vehicles be sold with a block heater. I imagine it's the same there. We don't see -60 usually, but -40 once or twice a year is normal.
Cool (sic). We don't have them mandatory in new cars - presumably because it would be a trade barrier within EU to require them only here, and we're too small to force the Mediterranians have them. [edit] BTW there is a legend here that in Siberia people actually keep a fire under engines to warm it up. I even found a photograph of lorries to support this: http://www.marxists.org/history/ussr/art/photography/workers.…
I'm pretty sure that's still sometimes done in the military.