Stockholm recorded just half an hour of sunshine in the first half of December, which, if the trend continues, could make it the darkest December since 1934, according to meteorologists.
Sweden, like other Nordic countries, is accustomed to long, dark winters, with shorter days and longer nights due to its northern geographic location. But this December was exceptionally dark and cloudy in Stockholm, meteorologist Viktor Bergman of the Swedish Meteorology and Hydrology Institute (SMHI) told AFP on Tuesday.
“So far in December – the month is not over yet – there has only been half an hour of sunshine,” he said. “We had unstable low pressure systems with mild and humid weather, which brought a lot of clouds. The sky did not have a chance to clear,” he added. “The sun was weak and its rays failed to dissipate the clouds,” he added.
According to data compiled from 1991 to 2020, the average duration of sunshine in Stockholm for the entire month of December is around 33 hours, Viktor Bergman said. The sun could reappear in Stockholm in the coming days, “but it’s a bit uncertain,” he added.
0 hours in 1934
The darkest December on record in the Swedish capital was in 1934, when the sunshine was so little that it was “rounded to zero hours”, Viktor Bergman said.
Other parts of Sweden have had a better December, with the southeastern town of Karlskrona recording the most sunshine in the country, with 12 hours so far.
Stockholm has also not experienced any real snowfall this winter, which contributes to the feeling of darkness, as by reflecting off the ground it helps to light up the surrounding area. This doesn’t seem likely to change, Viktor Bergman predicted, dashing Stockholmers’ hopes of a white Christmas. “The outlook is very pessimistic for Christmas,” he said.
