Winter in Finland | Finland Portrait

Experience the Magic of the Northern Lights

Watching northern lights is one of the coolest things to do outdoors. And one of the coolest places to experience the magic of the northern lights is definitely Finnish Lapland!

Experience the Magic of the Northern Lights in Lapland

Northern lights can be seen near the magnetic poles of the Earth. This belt around the magnetic pole is called auroral oval. Finland is located on the southern rim of the arctic auroral oval. So it’s basicly possible to see northern lights anywhere in Finland.

Especially during geomagnetic storms the northern lights can be seen in Central Finland, and even in Southern Finland. But this is quite rare. The further north you are, better changes you have.

On average, you can see the northern lights in southern Finland only once a month. In Lapland, however, the chances of seeing the northern lights improve significantly. On a dark and cloudless night, the northern lights are visible almost every other night. And in the northernmost parts of Finland, for example in Kilpisjärvi, the chances of seeing the northern lights are 75%.

When is the Best Time to see the Northern Lights?

Northern lights are caused by the solar wind. This phenomenon occurs throughout the year. So northern lights can be seen anytime of the year, right?
Yes sure, if it’s dark enough.

To be able to see the northern lights, the night must be dark and preferably cloudless. The northern lights occur fairly evenly throughout the year, but according to statistics, in spring and autumn it is slightly larger than in winter and summer. Considering the Finnish winter weather, the best times in Lapland to enjoy the northern lights standing outdoors are March and early April.

And what time you should be standing outdoors? The best time to see the northern lights is midnight and a couple of hours before and after. But you don’t have to wait for the night. In the middle of winter in Lapland it is dark almost all day. So when the weather is cloudless and it’s dark enough, don’t forget to look up. You might get to experience the magic of the northern lights!

Sources:
Finnish Meteorological Institute
Image by Rayann Elzein / Lapland Material Bank

How Cold is Winter in Helsinki?

Helsinki is located in the Southern Finland and on the coast of Gulf of Finland, which means that winters in Helsinki can be quite mild. But how cold is winter in Helsinki. And how much of snow does Helsinki get? Let’s find out!

Finland is located in Northern Europe, which means that winter weather in Finland can be snowy and cold. But what about winter in Helsinki. Helsinki is located in the Southern Finland and on the coast of Gulf of Finland, which means that winters in Helsinki can be quite mild. But how cold is winter in Helsinki. And how much of snow does Helsinki get? Let’s find out!

How Long is Winter in Helsinki?

On average, winter lasts about 3 months in Helsinki. Winter can begin as early as October, but usually winter in November or December. Typical winter months are December, January and February.

How Short is Winter in Helsinki?

Sometimes, winter in Helsinki can be much shorter than usually. Or begin a little later. It is not uncommon for the winter to begin in January.

For example the winter of 2008-2009 was very short. The temperature in Helsinki stayed below zero just for 9 consecutive days at the end of March. The winter of 2019-2020 was even shorter. It lasted just 5 days at the end of February.

How Cold is Winter in Helsinki?

The average temperature for the winter months (December-February) for the past 30 years (1991-2020) is -2.5 °C. On the coldest winter days temperature can drop to -15 or -20 °C. Winter temperature can drop as low as -30 °C in Helsinki, but that is quite rare.

Does Helsinki have Harsh Winters?

In Helsinki, the weather is considered to be very cold when the temperature is -20 °C or colder. The longest cold season in Helsinki was experienced at the beginning of 1968, when the temperature was colder than -20 °C for 13 consecutive days between January 6th and January 13th, 1968.

Another cold winter was experienced in 1986-1987. The temperature remained below -30 °C between January 8th and 13th, 1987.

What has been the Coldest Day in Helsinki?

The coldest winter day in Helsinki was January 10th, 1987, when temperature dropped to -35.9 °C. This is the coldest winter temperature ever recorded in Helsinki.

How Warm is Winter in Helsinki?

Usually winter temperatures are fairly mild in Helsinki. And it’s not even uncommon for the temperature to rise momentarily above 0 °C during the winter months. So don’t be surprised if it sometimes rains water instead of snow.

February is usually the coldest month in Helsinki, but this wasn’t the case in 1943. On February 28th, 1943, temperature rose to 11.8 °C. This is the warmest temperature ever recorded in February in Helsinki, or in Finland.

When it Snows in Helsinki?

On average, the first snow cover appears in Helsinki on November 11th, and the permanent snow cover arrives on January 9th.

The earliest snow cover ever witnessed in Helsinki was on September 29th, 1928, when people in Helsinki got to enjoy an 8 cm (3 inch) thick cover of snow.

How Long is the Snow Season in Helsinki?

On average, the snow season in Helsinki lasts 97 days.

How Short is the Snow Season in Helsinki

Usually Helsinki gets a layer of snow every winter, but sometimes the snow season can be very short. The shortest winter in Helsinki was experienced in 2019-2020. It snowed couple of times during winter but the longest time the ground was white continiously was just 4 days. And the snow cover was just 3 cm (1 inch) deep at its best.

How Much it Snows in Helsinki?

Usually Helsinki gets its fair share of the snow as well. The thickest snow cover in Helsinki was measured on March 23rd, 1941, when snow cover was 109 cm (43 inches) deep.

When Winter ends in Helsinki?

On average the snow melts away in Helsinki by March 25th. But in 1941, snow stayed on the ground much longer. In the spring of 1941, the snow cover didn’t disappear until May 5th.

More info
Finnish Meteorological Institute
Image by

10 Fun Facts about the Northern Lights

Northern lights look both mythical and amazing. But what do we know about them?
Here are some fun to known facts about the northern lights.

Northern lights look both mythical and amazing. But what do we know about them? Here are some fun facts about the northern lights.

Fun Facts about the Northern Lights

1. What are Northern Lights?

Northern lights look amazing on a dark sky looking like dancing waves of light. But what we see as lights are actually powerful collisions on Earth’s upper atmosphere.

2. What Causes Northern Lights

Sun is constantly ejecting charged particles to the space. This is called the solar wind. The particles can reach supersonic speed as they travel through space.

Some of the particles travel towards Earth. Earth’s defense line, the magnetic field redirects the particles towards Earth’s magnetic poles. When the electrically charged particles collide with the gasses on Earth’s upper atmosphere, the northern lights are born.

3. Where Northern Lights can be seen?

Northern lights (or southern lights) can be seen in the northernmost and southernmost areas of the Earth. This area around Earth’s magnetic pole is known as an auroral oval.

4. When Northern Lights are Most Active?

The solar activity varies with the 11-year sunspot cycle. This affects also to the frequency of the northern lights. But don’t worry even if it’s not the the most active year, northern lights are seen every year.

Northern lights are a bit more common during spring and autumn than during summer or winter. So basically they can be seen throughout the year, but you can see them only when it’s dark enough.

6. Catch them at Midnight

Northern lights can be seen any time of the day (when it’s dark enough), but statistically the best time to catch them is at midnight.

7. Northern Lights are usually Green or Violet

Northern lights usually glow in shades of green and violet, but they can also be red or blue. The color depends on the height at which the collisions take place as there are different gasses at different heights on the Earth’s atmosphere.

8. Are There Northern Lights in Finland?

Yes. Finland is located on the auroral oval so northern lights can be seen in Finland. They can be seen anywhere in Finland, but you have better chances to see them in Northern Finland. Chances of seeing northern lights in Southern Finland is just once a month (on average) but in Northern Finland (Lapland) you can see them almost every other night (on average).

9. Lapland is the Best Place to see Northern Lights

If you want to see northern lights, you should visit Finnish Lapland. In Lapland northern lights can be seen almost 200 nights a year.

10. Named after Roman Goddess

The official terms for northern lights are aurora borealis (arctic) and aurora australis (antarctic). The word aurora comes from the Roman goddess of the dawn.

In Finland They are known as “Revontulet”

In Finnish language northern lights are known as “revontulet” which translates to fox’s fires. Perhaps because the auroras may look like a tail of a mythical firefox.

More info:
Visit Lapland
Finnish Meteorological Institute
Image by Marko Junttila / Lapland Material Bank

How Cold is Winter in Finland?

How cold is winter in Finland?
Winter is the longest season in Finland, so winters in Finland can be snowy and cold. But how cold exactly? Let’s find out!

How cold is winter in Finland?
Winter is the longest season in Finland, so winter weather in Finland can be snowy and cold.
But how cold exactly? Let’s find out!

How Long is the Cold Season in Finland

Officially winter season begins in Finland when the mean temperature is below 0 °C. By this definiton winter lasts about 3 months in Southern Finland and 7 months in Northern Finland (Lapland).

How Cold is Winter in Finland

Winter temperatures in Finland are usually very tolerable. But every winter there are also those freezing days. On the coldest days the temperature can drop to -30 °C in Finland. In Lapland and in Eastern Finland temperature can drop as low as -45 °C .

What is the Coldest Month in Finland

Usually the coldest days are experienced in February. The average temperature in Finland in February is -8.5 °C.

What was the Coldest Month ever Recorded in Finland?

January 1985 was really freezing in Kuusamo, Lapland. That month the average temperature was just -29.7 °C.

What is the Coldest Temperature ever Recorded in Helsinki?

Winter’s in Helsinki are usually quite mild. But there are also many winters when temperatures have dropped below -30 °C. The coldest temperature ever recorded in Helsinki is -35.9 °C. This was recorded on Janyary 10th 1987.

What is the Coldest Temperature ever Recorded in Finland?

On January 28th, 1999, temperature dropped to -51.5 °C in Kittilä, Lapland. This is the coldest temperature ever recorded in Finland.

Weather can be Freezing for Days

Sometimes weather can be freezing for days in a row. The longest cold period ever recorded in Finland was in Sodankylä in February 1985 when temperatures were below -25 °C for 26 consecutive days.

Winter Days aren’t Always Freezing

Weather isn’t always freezing even during winter. Sometimes temperature might rise well above 0 °C in winter. Especially in Southern Finland this is quite common.

February, which is usually the coldest month, was surprisingly warm in Helsinki in 1943. On February 28th 1943 the temperature rose to 11.8 °C. This is the warmest temperature ever recorded in February in Finland.

Usually it Snows, but sometimes it Rains

Although it usually snows during winter, it sometimes rains. Every winter there are 2-5 days/month when it rains in Southern Finland. In Northern Finland this is quite rare. It only happens just once a month on average.

When Cold Season Ends in Finland?

Spring begins when mean temperature is above 0 °C. In Southern Finland spring usually arrives in April. In Northern Finland spring usually arrives about a month later.

Sources:
Finnish Meteorological Institute

There are Official Ice Roads in Finland

Did you know that there are three official ice roads in Finland?

Did you know that there are official ice roads in Finland?

Ice Roads in Finland

In Finland there are three official ice roads. These roads are opened if the winter is cold enough. Meaning that the ice must be strong enough. The ice layer must be at least 40 cm (16 inches) thick for the ice road to open.

At the earliest, the ice roads have already opened in mid-December. But usually the roads open in January or February. The ice roads are usually closed in February or March. But there have been years when the ice roads have been open even in April.

If the ice thickness hasn’t grown enough by the mid February, then the ice road isn’t opened at all. This have happened on average once in a decade.

Three Official Ice Roads

The three official ice roads in Finland are Oulu-Hailuoto, Koli-Vuonislahti and Räisälä. These ice roads are constantly maintained and the ice condition is monitored. Driving on an official ice road should be safe, as long as you follow the traffic rules and common sense.

In addition to the official ice roads, some local ice roads mights be opened during winter on lakes and in archipelago. But unless you are absolutely sure that these are safe to drive, you shouldn’t take a chance. The ice might not be as strong as it looks. Or strong enough to carry a car. There might be cracks or water on the ice. So drive safely, follow the rules, and use only official ice roads.

Oulu-Hailuoto ice Road

Oulu-Hailuoto ice road is plowed on the ice of the Bothnian Bay sea to connect the city of Oulu with the Hailuoto island. This route is normally operated by a ferry. But thanks to the ice road, people don’t have to wait for the ferry’s.

Oulu-Hailuoto ice road is about 10 km (6 miles) long. It is the longest ice road in Finland.

Koli-Vuonislahti Ice Road

Thanks to the Koli-Vuonislahti ice road, you can drive over the lake Pielinen. This is a popular route used by locals and tourists alike because of the Koli National Park. The ice road shortens the distance between the city of Lieksa and Koli village by 51 km.

Koli-Vuonislahti ice road is 7 km (4.3 miles) long. It is the longest ice road on a lake in Europe.

Räisälä Ice Road

Räisälä ice road is on the lake Kemijärvi. it replaces the ferry that usually operates there. The length of the Räisälä ice road is about 500 m (0.3 miles).

More info:
Koli Ice Road
Hailuoto
Image by Riitta Supperi / Kuvatoimisto KEKSI / Finland Promotion Board