Siberian High

The Siberian High (also Siberian Anticyclone) is a massive collection of cold or very cold dry air that accumulates on the northeastern part of Eurasian terrain for the cold part of the year, roughly from September till April. Usually, it is centered on Lake Baikal. It reaches its greatest size and strength in the winter, when the air temperature near the center of the high-pressure cell or anticyclone is often lower than −40 °C (−40 °F). The sea-level pressure (atmospheric pressure) is often above 1,040 millibars (31 inHg). The Siberian High is the strongest semi-permanent high in the northern hemisphere and is responsible for both the lowest recorded temperature in the Northern Hemisphere, of −67.8 °C (−90.0 °F) on 15 January 1885 at Verkhoyansk, and the highest pressure, 1083.8 mbar (108.38 kPa, 32.01 inHg) at Agata, Krasnoyarsk Krai on 31 December 1968. The Siberian High is responsible both for severe winter cold and attendant dry conditions with little snow and few or no glaciers across Siberia, Mongolia and China. During the summer, the Siberian High is largely replaced by the Asiatic low.