It’s cold in Chicago, but how does Friday’s brutal temperatures compare to some of the coldest places on Earth?
Chicago’s air temperatures reached as low as -11 degrees with -36-degree wind chills. While it’s not the coldest air the city has ever seen, it did mark one of the coldest days in years.
But the city’s air temperatures are far from the lowest recorded around the world, and even the U.S. Friday.
According to the National Weather Service, the lowest air temperatures in the U.S. Friday morning were -34 degrees, recorded outside of Poplar, Montana; Inger Minnesota; and Badoura, Minnesota.
Meanwhile, globally, Time and Date reported Khatanga, Russia, reached air temperatures of -40 degrees, with feels-like temps of -56.
These temperatures hardly compare to the record lows found at the coldest place on Earth.
According to NASA, a high ridge in Antarctica on the East Antarctic Plateau can see temperatures dipping below -133.6 degrees Fahrenheit on a clear winter night.
While Chicago’s temperatures appear to mirror those seen in Antarctica currently, it’s important to note that it is summer there.
Still, air temperatures were -20 degrees as of Friday morning at the Vostock Station, with feels-like temps dropping to -39 degrees.
In Siberia, -22-degree temps were reported.
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