For the first half of the week, light rain and snow showers
prevailed with temperatures averaging up to 5°C above
normal.During this period, snow cover (2-10 cm) was confined to northern-most growing areas and to southern portions of the Southern District.
By week’s end, however, below-normal temperatures accompanied a developing storm system, resulting in widespread snowfall (5-30 mm liquid equivalent) from Ukraine into central Russia, with lesser snow accumulations closer to the Black Sea Coast.
The late week snow provided beneficial insulation (snow pack of 5-15 cm, locally more than 25 cm) to dormant winter crops across much of the region.