WATCH: From East to West, Canadians are asking how long this blast of Arctic cold will last. Mike Drolet looks how people are faring with the winter weather.
TORONTO – Canadians looking to escape 2015’s first round of frigid weather might want to book a trip to Antarctica.
Across the country, millions of Canadians are dealing with temperatures well below average, the coldest being the territories and the Prairies.
How cold is it?
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Well, in Iqaluit, people woke up to -34 C and the mercury was only expected to climb to just -30 C. In Yellowknife, it was -25 C. Whitehorse was expected to reach a high of just -26 C.
Okay, you might say: those places are always cold this time of year. But Iqualuit’s normal daytime high is typically -22 C, Whitehorse -14 C.
And then there are the Prairies.
On Monday, Calgary was expected to reach -16 C. Their normal daytime high? -3 C. Regina’s high for Monday is forecast to be -22 C on a day that averages a temperature of -11 C. Even poor Winnipeg, which normally sees a daytime high of -13 C was only expected to reach -21 C.
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So now, let’s look at balmy Antarctica. Yes. Balmy.
Davis Station reached a high of -1 C on Monday. The Japanese Dome Fuji Station was -1 C, while the American McMurdo Station was 1 C.
Now, that’s not to say that there are places in Antarctica that aren’t cold: Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station reached a high of -24 C, Concordia Station reached a high of -21 C.
But that’s still warmer than our territories.
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To be fair, it is summer in Antarctica. But when you look at the coldest place on Earth and see that it’s still warmer than Canada, it hurts.
But come the summer, we’ll look at Antarctica and be glad we’re basking in the heat while they’re enduring the temperatures we’re having now.
We also have to remember that the coldest temperature on Earth was recorded in Antarctica. Recent satellite data revealed that in Aug. 2010, the mercury dipped down to -94.7 C . The coldest temperature ever recorded in Canada belongs to Snag, Yukon which recorded a temperature of -63 C on Feb. 3, 1947.
But it’s fun to compare Canada to Antarctica especially when we’re bitter about the cold. Still, at least it’s not last winter.
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