The western slopes have a very humid and relatively mild climate, with precipitation exceeding 2,000 millimeters (80 inches) per year. In the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia and Alberta, the climate varies according to altitude and slope exposure. Here, the coldest record is -57 ☌ (-70.5 ☏). Here are the average temperatures of Inuvik, located in the Northwest Territories, at a latitude of 68 ° N, not far from the coast of the Beaufort Sea. However, in Snag, the monthly average temperature ranges from -27.5 ☌ (-17.5 ☏) in January to 13.5 ☌ (56.5 ☏) July, when the average maximum is 20 ☌ (68 ☏). Cold waves like this are due to the proximity to Siberia: when a high pressure system moves over the Pacific Ocean, a "train" of cold air (which in North America is called "Siberian Express") flows from eastern Siberia, and sometimes reaches the mid-west regions of the United States as well. In the northwest, the lowest temperatures of the entire North American continent have been recorded: on February 3, 1947, in Snag, Yukon, almost 600 meters (2,000 feet) above sea level, on the border with Alaska, the temperature dropped to -63 ☌ (-81.5 ☏). Of course, this applies to valleys and hilly areas: high mountains remain obviously cold even in summer. In the northwest, in the provinces of Yukon and Northwest Territories, the climate is strongly continental, with a long, cold winter and an intense summer, during which the daytime temperature can sometimes reach 30 ☌ (86 ☏). Here are the average temperatures of Alert, in the far north (in the Nunavut Province, at a latitude of 82 ° N, near Greenland), where only 155 millimeters (6 inches) of rain or snow fall per year. In Arctic areas, the temperature hovers around freezing or rises a few degrees above, while in subarctic areas, it rises above that value but remains on average below 10 ☌ (50 ☏). The vast Arctic and subarctic regions, from the northern islands to the Hudson Bay, experience only two seasons: a long winter, with night temperatures normally around -30/-35 ☌ (-31/-22 ☏), and three summer months, during which the temperature is around or just above freezing. However, southern British Columbia (see Vancouver) is also sunny in summer, and Arctic regions (see Alert) in late spring. The sunniest area is that of the Great Prairies, east of the Rocky Mountains (Alberta, Manitoba and Saskatchewan): in cities such as Calgary, Winnipeg, Edmonton and Regina, the sun shines more than 2,300 hours per year. So, the temperature of the ocean near Halifax is 1 ☌ (34 ☏) from January to April, while on the coast near Vancouver, it hits a low of 8 ☌ (46 ☏) in February. The Atlantic coast (see Nova Scotia, Newfoundland) is much colder than the Pacific one, both because the prevailing winds come from the west (so, in the East coast, they come from inland) and because a cold sea current flows along the Atlantic coast, namely, the Labrador Current.
The Rocky Mountains obstruct the flow of mild Pacific air masses, while there are no topographic barriers that could block cold air masses coming from the North Pole therefore, apart from the west coast, the rest of the country experiences freezing winters. The only area where the average temperature exceeds the freezing point (32 degrees Fahrenheit or zero degrees Celsius) in winter is the coast of British Columbia (see Vancouver), where the climate is oceanic, cool and rainy. Nevertheless, during the short summer, there may be some hot days, especially in the southern inland areas. The population distribution (the largest cities are located along the southern part of the country) and its scarcity (although Canada is one of the world's largest countries, it has approximately 35 million inhabitants) show how hard the environmental conditions are in much of the country, mainly because of the cold climate. Arctic and subarctic climate - Alert, Churchill, Northwest, InuvikĬanada is a huge country, largely characterized by freezing winters: latitude and continentality, as well as the position of the mountain ranges, make it one of the coldest countries on Earth.
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