A cold wave (known in some regions as a cold snap, cold spell or Arctic Snap) is a weather phenomenon that is distinguished by a cooling of the air. Specifically, as used by the U.S. National Weather Service, a cold wave is a rapid fall in temperature within a 24-hour period requiring substantially increased protection to agriculture, industry, commerce, and social activities. The precise criteria for a cold wave are the rate at which the temperature falls, and the minimum to which it falls. This minimum temperature is dependent on the geographical region and time of year. In the United States, a cold spell is defined as the national average high temperature dropping below 20 F. A cold wave of sufficient magnitude and duration may be classified as a cold air outbreak (CAO).

Effects

A cold wave can cause death and injury to livestock and wildlife. Exposure to cold mandates greater caloric intake for all animals, including humans, and if a cold wave is accompanied by heavy and persistent snow, grazing animals may be unable to reach needed food and die of hypothermia or starvation. They often necessitate the purchase of foodstuffs to feed livestock at considerable cost to farmers. Cold spells are associated with increased mortality rates in populations around the world. Both cold waves and heat waves cause deaths, though different groups of people may be susceptible to different weather events. More temperature-attributable deaths occur during a cold wave than in a heat wave, though the mortality rate is higher in undeveloped regions of the world. Extreme winter cold often causes poorly insulated water pipelines and mains to freeze. Even some poorly protected indoor plumbing ruptures as water expands within them, causing much damage to property and costly insurance claims. Demand for electrical power and fuels rises dramatically during such times, even though the generation of electrical power may fail due to the freezing of water necessary for the generation of hydroelectricity. Some metals may become brittle at low temperatures. Motor vehicles may fail when antifreeze fails or motor oil gels, producing a failure of the transportation system. Fires become even more of a hazard during extreme cold. Water mains may break and water supplies may become unreliable, making firefighting more difficult. The air during a cold wave is typically denser and thus contains more oxygen, so when air that a fire draws in becomes unusually cold it is likely to cause a more intense fire. However, snow may stop spreading of fires, especially wildfires. Winter cold waves that are not considered cold in some areas, but cause temperatures significantly below average for an area, are also destructive. Areas with subtropical climates may recognize a cold wave at higher temperatures than other, colder areas of the globe. The cold wave may be recognized at barely freezing temperatures, as these are still unusually cold for the region, and plant and animal life will be less tolerant of such cold. The same winter temperatures that one associates with the norm for Colorado, Ohio, or Bavaria are catastrophic to crops in places like Florida, California, or parts of South America that grow fruit and vegetables in winter. Cold waves that bring unexpected freezes and frosts during the growing season in mid-latitude zones can kill plants during the early and most vulnerable stages of growth, resulting in crop failure as plants are killed before they can be harvested economically. Such cold waves have caused famines. At times as deadly to plants as drought, cold waves can leave land in danger of later brush and forest fires that consume dead biomass. One extreme was the so-called Year Without a Summer of 1816, one of several years during the 1810s in which numerous crops failed during freakish summer cold snaps after volcanic eruptions that reduced incoming sunlight. Recent research suggests a possible link between cold waves in North America and extratropical cyclogenesis over the East Atlantic. These may be connected by large-scale atmospheric circulation patterns. Examples include Rossby wave propagation from the North Pacific or an upper-level anticyclone west of Greenland. In Europe, the advection of cold air masses from the northeast emerges as a potential precursor signal for the majority of cold waves, significantly affecting the energy, health, and agricultural sectors of the continent.

Countermeasures

In some places, such as Siberia, extreme cold requires that fuel-powered machinery intended to be used occasionally must be run continually. Internal plumbing can be wrapped, and persons can often run water continuously through pipes. Energy conservation, difficult as it is in a cold wave, may require such measures as collecting people (especially the poor and elderly) in communal shelters. Even the homeless may be arrested and taken to shelters, only to be released when the hazard abates. Hospitals can prepare for the admission of victims of frostbite and hypothermia; schools and other public buildings can be converted into shelters. People can stock up on food, water, and other necessities before a cold wave. Some may even choose to migrate to places of milder climates, at least during the winter. Suitable stocks of forage can be secured before cold waves for livestock, and livestock in vulnerable areas might be shipped from affected areas or even slaughtered. Smudge pots can bring smoke that prevents hard freezes on a farm or grove. Vulnerable crops may be sprayed with water that will paradoxically protect the plants by freezing and absorbing the cold from surrounding air. Most people can dress appropriately and can layer their clothing should they need to go outside or should their heating fail. They can also stock candles, matches, flashlights, and portable fuel for cooking and wood for fireplaces or wood stoves, as necessary. However, caution should be taken as the use of charcoal fires for cooking or heating within an enclosed dwelling is extremely dangerous due to carbon monoxide poisoning. Adults must remain aware of the exposure that children and the elderly have to cold.

Historical cold waves

17th century cold waves (1601–1700)

18th century cold waves (1701–1800)

19th century cold waves (1801–1900)

1835 1836 1857 1859 1874–1875 1882–1883 1886–1887 1888 1893 1895 1899

20th-century cold waves (1901–2000)

1904 1912 1916-1917 1917-1918 1930 1932 1933 1934 1936 1937 1940 1941–1942 1947 1949 1950 1954-1955 1956 1962–1963 1966 1968–1969 1975 1977 1978 1979 1981–1982 1983 1985–1986 1987 1989 1990–1991 1994 1995 1996 1997 2000

21st-century cold waves (2001–present)

2002 2004–2005 2005–2006 2007 2008 2009–2010 2010–2011 2012 2013 2013-2014 2016 2017 2017–2018 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024