Oymyakon: Coldest settlement on earth hit -62C - then the thermometer broke

International Business Times ^ | January 15, 2018 | Claire Toureille

[EdnaMode]

This Siberian village's thermometer broke last night because of how cold it was.

Oymyakon, in the Siberian region of Yakutia, is the coldest inhabited village on Earth. Each winter, it records some of the world's lowest temperatures and the town seems frozen in time.

On 14 January, Oymyakon got so cold, its brand new thermometer broke after reaching a mind numbing -62C, reports the Siberian Times. In comparison, the only other places to get this cold or colder are unpopulated areas of Antarctica.

But locals have reported temperatures far colder than the official -62C on their properties, thanks to their own thermometers. For the town's 500 inhabitants, it's just business as usual. Oymyakon is the Pole of Cold, the point in the Northern Hemisphere where it gets the coldest. During the winter season, the temperature reaches an average of -45C. But life doesn't stop for a slight chill.

A group of Chinese tourists braved the freezing temperature and visited a spring over the weekend, where they were filmed dancing in their swimwear, earning the admiration of locals.

[EdnaMode]

Maybe algore and Leonardo DiCaprio can give their next climate change speeches there....

[Red Badger]

Now THAT’S COLD!..........................

[Red Badger]

-79.6° F.......................

[Artemis Webb]

That’s -79.6F.

[dfwgator]

Maybe algore and Leonardo DiCaprio can give their next climate change speeches there....

[N. Theknow]

New menu item for the local McDonalds there...a JEEEZE-BRRRRRgur.

[ImJustAnotherOkie]

Rumor has it, that the scientist’s have realized their mistake. They had the thermometers upside down.

[rdl6989]

How can people live in a place like that?

[Red Badger]

Stay indoors a lot..................

[married21]

oy!my akon thermometer!

[rdl6989]

And pray the furnace doesn’t break down.

[headsonpikes]

I spent the ‘70s in Northern Canada. Several winters saw weeks of -40 and colder. There is certainly an unearthly quality to a -51 sunrise at 9:30 AM.

Everything is absolutely still.

[Made In The USA]

Why live in a place like that?

[Cowboy Bob]

That was the best part of the movie. I began to clap when he sunk to the bottom of the Atlantic. Needless to say, the rest of the audience was in tears...and my wife was a little embarrassed. 😆😆😆

[dfwgator]

Any real man would have cheered Jack’s demise.

[fwdude]

The short story “To Build a Fire” always comes to mind when I hear about cold like this. In the story, the sole character knows it’s cold when his spit freezes and crackles in mid air.

[NorthMountain]

For reference, metallic mercury freezes at -40C/F

[butlerweave]

Leonardo DiCaprio is busy making a Charles Manson movie

[Hieronymus]

Why live in a place like that?

---

Hockey, ice fishing, good hunting, and good ol’ boys. Not many snowflakes in places like that. (I’m in the Ontario near-north).

[Poison Pill]

Why live in a place like that?

The reality you're born into seems normal to you.