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WEATHER

Switzerland set for warmer than usual spring

Switzerland is set for a warmer than average March to May, according to the latest long-term weather forecasts.

Published: 11 February 2022 17:31 CET
Switzerland is set for one of the warmest summers on record, according to latest forecasts. Photo by Janosch Diggelmann on Unsplash
Switzerland is set for one of the warmest summers on record, according to latest forecasts. Photo by Janosch Diggelmann on Unsplash

It’s always darkest, as the saying goes, before the dawn, and while Switzerland is currently engulfed in the February chill, warm days are just around the corner. 

Swiss meteorology service MeteoSwiss has forecast a warmer than average spring, with temperatures to average 10.4 from March to May. 

EXPLAINED: Why warm winters are especially bad for Switzerland

“The seasonal outlook is created monthly for the three following months, each for the three regions of north-eastern Switzerland, western Switzerland and southern Switzerland,” MeteoSwiss said on Friday. 

As expected, the reason for the warmer than usual weather is climate change, which has contributed to warmer temperatures and more frequent inclement weather across Switzerland in recent years. 

MeteoSwiss however noted that while the forecast represented the most up to date assessment of the coming spring, longer-term forecasts are more difficult and can be subject to change. 

READ ALSO: Swiss glaciers shrink ten percent in five years

“Unlike weather forecasts, long-term forecasts of climate development are naturally subject to a high level of uncertainty. Although significant progress has been made in recent years with powerful computers and model simulations,” MeteoSwiss said in a statement. 

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WEATHER

Will Switzerland be visited by ‘Ice Saints’ this year?

Ascension is not the only annual happening in the country in May, as Switzerland also ‘celebrates’ another 'chilling' event this month.

Published: 8 May 2024 14:20 CEST
Will Switzerland be visited by 'Ice Saints' this year?

From May 11th to the 15th, a meteorological event takes place each year in Switzerland.

It “observes”, though admittedly not on scientific basis, a centuries-old weather phenomenon called “Ice Saints”.

What exactly is it?

As its name suggests, it is related to saints, as well as ice and frost.

The saints in question are St Mamertus, St Pancras, St Servatius and St Boniface.

According to a weather lore, once these Ice Saints have passed through Switzerland in the middle of May, frost will no longer pose a threat to farmers and their land.

As the official government meteorological service MeteoSwiss explains it, “spring frosts have been a regular occurrence for centuries, giving rise to the traditional belief that a blast of cold air often arrives in the middle of May. Over time, this piece of weather lore became known as the Ice Saints.”

Fact versus myth

You may be wondering whether the Ice Saints lore actually has basis in reality.

Records, which date back to 1965 and originate from the Geneva-Cointrin, Payerne, and Zurich-Kloten weather stations, “clearly show that, over the long-term average, frost directly above the soil is only a regular occurrence up until the middle of April”, MeteoSwiss says. “After that, the frequency with which ground frost occurs progressively declines to almost zero by the end of May.”

“We can conclude, therefore, that there is no evidence in Switzerland to confirm the Ice Saints as a period in May when ground frost is more common.”

However, MeteoSwiss does concede that “ground frost is nevertheless a regular occurrence throughout May as a whole…having occurred at least once or twice in May every year, and in around 40 percent of the years there were more than two days in May with ground frost.”

What about this year?

MeteoSwiss weather forecast for the next seven days indicates that, this year too, no frost will be present on the ground in mid-May.

In fact, temperatures through much of Switzerland will be in double digits, reaching between 18C and 25C, depending on the region.

You can see what to expect in your area, here. 

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