Weather - Start of winter: slippery and cold at the beginning of December
At the meteorological start of winter, it is quite cold in large parts of Germany and has already been white in the south and south-east as well as at higher altitudes. On the weekend of the first Advent (3.12.), you should dress warmly for a visit to the Christmas market, according to the DWD (German Weather Service) forecast. Or you can stay at home to bake cookies. The calendar or astronomical start of winter is not for another three weeks - on December 22. However, winter already began meteorologically on Friday (December 1). In meteorology, the entire months of December, January and February are winter.
Winter sports season starts earlier than it has for a long time
The ski season began on Germany's highest mountain, the Zugspitze, on Friday in foggy conditions. Not since 2007 has there been so much snow at the start of the season with over two meters, said Verena Tanzer, spokeswoman for the Bayerische Zugspitzbahn.
The first ski lifts also went into operation in the Sauerland region on Friday after the early onset of winter, as well as in Oberhof in Thuringia - the earliest time in ten years, according to the operator of the ski lift in the "Lotto Thüringen Snowpark Oberhof".
Winter operations with lifts in the Black Forest had already begun in the middle of the week, followed a day later by Söllereck in the Allgäu. The heavy snowfall over the past few days had somewhat disrupted the order of the season opening. On Hesse's highest mountain, the Wasserkuppe, for example, skiing is due to start this Saturday.
Many traffic accidents in southern Germany due to icy conditions
In southern Germany, snowfall and slippery roads caused dozens of accidents on Friday night and in the morning. Several people were injured. A total of seven people were injured, four of them seriously, in an accident on the Autobahn 81 near Mundelsheim in Baden-Württemberg near Ludwigsburg. A 33-year-old driver had lost control of his vehicle and crashed into the central crash barrier several times. As a result, three cars were also involved in the accident.
More than 150 take-offs and landings were canceled at Munich Airport on Friday due to the weather.
What it will be like on the first weekend of Advent
On Saturday, the sun will only be visible at times in the north, otherwise the sky will be overcast or even very cloudy, according to the DWD. From the edge of the Alps to Lusatia, snow will fall at times, sometimes heavy on the edge of the Alps and in the Alps. Temperatures will be between minus 5 and 0 degrees, in the south and west they may slip slightly into the plus range. With similar temperatures, it will be mostly dry during the day on Sunday and the sun will shine at times. Only in the north and east may it snow locally.
Lesen Sie auch:
The weather in Bavaria has also been affected, with smooth roads turning icy due to the frost. Winter in Saxony and Brandenburg is expected to begin similarly, according to DWD predictions. The early onset of winter has led to the opening of ski resorts in Offenbach and other Southern German regions. Despite the slippery conditions, many people chose to visit the Christmas market in Thuringia over the weekend. Unfortunately, the icy roads resulted in several accidents in Southern Germany, causing delays in traffic and injuries. Despite the frost, the upper yard of some buildings in Germany remains free from snow.
Source: www.stern.de
