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Last week, visitors to Uttarakhand’s <keyword id="20923317" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="Om-Parvat" source="keywords">Om Parvat</keyword> were met with an unprecedented sight — the revered peak, known for its perpetual snow cover forming the sacred "Om" symbol, was completely devoid of snow for the first time in recorded history. This alarming phenomenon has sparked concerns among locals, tourists, and environmental experts alike.<br /><br />Experts have attributed the <keyword id="22948698" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="snow-disappearance" source="keywords">snow disappearance</keyword> to a combination of factors, including scanty rainfall and irregular snowfall in the upper <keyword id="20128077" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Himalayan-region" source="keywords">Himalayan region</keyword> over the past five years, escalating vehicular pollution, and the broader impacts of <keyword id="19942740" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="global-warming" source="keywords">global warming</keyword>. The cumulative effect of these environmental stressors has led to a dramatic change in Om Parvat’s snow cover, which melted completely this year, a stark departure from its usual 95-99% snow retention rate.<br /><h2>Implications on Uttarakhand’s tourism and ecology</h2>Local officials expressed concerns that the absence of snow could negatively impact tourism, which is a vital part of the region’s economy. Hordes of pilgrims visit the Om Parvat due to the the profound significance of the “Om” symbol, to meditate and bask in the spiritual vibrations of the mystical place.<br /><br />Om Parvat, situated at an altitude of approximately 14,000 feet in the Vyas Valley, is not only a popular tourist destination but also holds spiritual significance due to the natural "Om" formation on its snow-clad peak. The recent <keyword id="22950379" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="snowless-period" source="keywords">snowless period</keyword> left visitors and residents alike unsettled.<br /><br />Spiritual importance aise, the Adi Kailash and Om Parvat are also home to a diverse flora and fauna that contribute to the Himalayan biodiversity. Local communities living in the mountains’ surrounding regions are similarly reliant on the Om Parvat to preserve their age-old traditions and customs. These already fragile ecosystems are further endangered by the impacts of <keyword id="19907392" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="climate-change" source="keywords">climate change</keyword>.<br /><h2>The return of snow</h2>Dhan Singh Bisht, who has served at the base camp of Adi Kailash yatra in Dharchula for over two decades, noted that this is the first time in his tenure that he witnessed Om Parvat completely devoid of snow, NDTV reported. The viral photos of the snowless peak even caught district administration officials off guard.<br /><br />However, they could heave a collective sigh of relief after fresh snowfall on Monday night. Momentarily alleviating fears about the hill’s future, forecasts indicate that wet conditions are expected to continue over <keyword id="20396441" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="pithoragarh" source="keywords">Pithoragarh</keyword> — where Om Parvat is situated.<br /><h2>Cause for concern<br /></h2>The loss of snow on Om Parvat can be interpreted as a momentary warning. Environmental experts like Sunil Nautiyal, Director of GB Pant National Institute of Himalayan Environment, have underscored the need to address the root causes of this issue. Rising temperatures in the Himalayan region, fueled by increased vehicular emissions and global warming, are contributing to the rapid melting of snow. Nautiyal also highlighted the damaging effects of rampant forest fires, which release carbon that further harms these sensitive ecological zones.<br /><br />The surge in tourist footfall following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Jolingkong last October is also being scrutinised as a possible contributor to the environmental changes observed in the region. <br /><br />The disappearance and subsequent return of snow to Om Parvat serve as a stark reminder of the delicate balance between human activity and environmental sustainability in the Himalayan region. As experts and locals continue to monitor the situation, the hope remains that proactive measures can prevent a repeat of this year’s alarming snowless period.<br />  <div type="Article" hostid="261" msid="110460525" title="Kalpa unveiled: Everything you need to know about this beautiful village" mstype="2" mssubtype="0"></div><br />

Snow has returned to the Om Parvat in Uttarakhand after completely disappearing from the peak for the first time

<p>Beijing <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/beijing-has-been-selected-to-host-the-2022-winter-olympics-2015-7">will host the 2022 Winter Olympics</a> after beating out Almaty, Kazakhstan, the only other country to bid, in a tight vote.</p><p>The bidding for the 2022 games was <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/2022-olympics-host-bidding-2014-10">a profound disappointment for the IOC</a>. Every potential host city with a democratically elected government dropped out nearly a year before the final vote, mostly over economic concerns and lack of public support. When Oslo - which <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/olympics-oslo-2022-olympics-2014-10">graded far higher than Beijing and Almaty</a> in the IOC's preliminary bid assessment - dropped out last October, it left the IOC with two less-than-ideal options.</p><p>In a 137-page evaluation of the two bids, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/the-only-2-cities-that-want-to-host-the-2022-olympics-have-a-ton-of-problems-2015-6">the IOC outlined several problems with a Beijing Winter Olympics</a>. The most obvious: there's no snow.</p><p>Mountain events will be split between two different clusters. Alpine skiing and sliding will take play in Yanqing, about 55 miles from Beijing. Freestyle skiing, snowboarding, and the Nordic disciplines will take place in Zhangjiakou, which is about 100 miles away.</p><p>The <a href="http://www.olympic.org/Documents/Host_city_elections/2022_Working_Group_Report.pdf">average snow depth</a> in Yanqing is 5 centimeters, with a minimum depth of 1 centimeter. The IOC included two photso of what the Yanqing mountain looks like for its bid evalution. These photos were taken between January 20-23, which is two weeks before the period during which the Beijing Olympics will take place in 2022.</p><p>There's no snow:</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table click-to-enlarge"><div><div class="image on-image"><a title_source="IOC" title_caption="" class="zoomin" href="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/556dbf3b6bb3f74424b23d02-960/screen shot 2015-06-02 at 10.28.21 am.png"><span class="sprites click-to-enlarge-icon" title="Click to enlarge"></span></a><p class="source"><span>IOC</span></p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>Here's the planned ski route:</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table click-to-enlarge"><div><div class="image on-image"><a title_source="IOC" title_caption="" class="zoomin" href="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/556dbf3beab8eadd503daf58-960/screen shot 2015-06-02 at 10.28.39 am.png"><span class="sprites click-to-enlarge-icon" title="Click to enlarge"></span></a><p class="source"><span>IOC</span></p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>The IOC sees this is a problem.</p><p>"The Zhangjiakou and Yanqing Zones have minimal annual snowfall and for the Games would rely completely on artificial snow," concluded the bid evalution. "There would be no opportunity to haul snow from higher elevations for contingency maintenance to the racecourses so a contingency plan would rely on stockpiled man-made snow."</p><p>While using artificial snow shouldn't affect the competition (<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/sochi-olympic-halfpipe-2014-2">or, maybe it will</a>), it's going to make for an odd viewing experience.</p><p>"Due to the lack of natural snow the 'look' of the venue may not be aesthetically pleasing either side of the ski run," the IOC admitted.</p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/sharks-spotted-coast-england-2015-7">People were baffled by 50 sharks circling in shallow waters off the English coast</a></h3>        <div>            <div>        <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="R1c2tjdjrwFAGrHUqd0W71KfHPLzHONw" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>        </div>        </div>            </div>

What the snow-less mountain that will host the 2022 Beijing Olympics looks like in the middle of winter

<keyword id="19896255" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="kashmir" source="keywords">Kashmir</keyword> is likely to receive light snow and rain next week, bringing an end to the prolonged dry spell in the valley, the weather office said on Friday. It said dry weather is likely to continue till January 24 with generally cloudy weather on Saturday evening. <br /><br />There is a possibility of light snow at isolated places in the higher reaches of Jammu and Kashmir on January 25, an official of the <keyword id="19938289" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="met-department" source="keywords">MeT Department</keyword> said. <br /><br />He said from January 26-28, light rain or snow is likely over scattered places in J-K. <br /><br />"From January 29-31, as per the indications of different models, the possibility of light to moderate rain/snow at many places is very likely, the official said. <br /><br />A dry and largely snowless winter in Kashmir has resulted in freezing nights and warmer than usual days. <br /><br />Kashmir is currently under the grip of "Chilla-i-Kalan", a 40-day harsh winter period when a cold wave sweeps the region and temperatures drop considerably leading to the freezing of water bodies as well as water in pipes. <br /><br />The chances of snowfall are the highest during this period and most areas, particularly the higher reaches, receive heavy snowfall. <br /><br />However, Kashmir has been going through a prolonged dry spell and a 79 per cent deficit in rainfall was recorded for December while there has been no precipitation in most parts of the valley in the first fortnight of January. <br /><br />'Chilla-i-Kalan' will end on January 31. However, the cold conditions will continue after that with a 20-day 'Chilla-i-Khurd' (small cold) and a 10-day 'Chilla-i-Bachha' (baby cold). <br /><br /><keyword id="19910854" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="srinagar" source="keywords">Srinagar</keyword> city recorded a minimum temperature of minus 4.9 degrees Celsius on Thursday night, dropping slightly from the previous night's minus 4.6 degrees Celsius, the officials said. <br /><br />Qazigund recorded a low of minus 5 degrees while in the ski resort of Gulmarg in north Kashmir it was minus 3.6 degrees Celsius, they said. <br /><br />Pahalgam in south Kashmir's Anantnag district, which serves as one of the base camps for the annual Amarnath Yatra, recorded a minimum temperature of minus 6.3 degrees Celsius. <br /><br />The minimum temperature in Kokernag town settled at minus 1.4 degrees Celsius and in Kupwara at minus 5 degrees Celsius.

Kashmir's dry spell likely to end next week

<p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div><p>When people ask what it's like to live in Chicago, I tell them, "Seven&#xa0;months a year, it's the greatest city in America."</p><p>The other five, of course, are often bitterly cold, snowy, and windy. And living there in the dead of winter, you learn to climb flights of steps coated in inches-thick sheets of ice that last all winter. Your hair ices over if you spend too long outdoors, brittle strands snapping off at a touch. You can go weeks in January and February without spending a comfortable second outdoors. When March rolls around, 25 degree weather becomes&#xa0;an excuse to break out the lightweight jacket.</p><p>But Chicago&#xa0;is having a weird winter this year. <a href="http://www.accuweather.com/en/us/chicago-il/60608/february-weather/348308">So far this February</a>, the city&#xa0;has experienced 18 days at about 40 degrees - a very unusual weather pattern in the Midwestern lakeshore metropolis - and one five-day period between February 18 and February 22 where the high temperatures&#xa0;were 67 degrees, 70 degrees, 67 degrees, 69 degrees, 65 degrees, and 67 degrees.</p><p>That's not the most shocking part. Chicago is a wildly snowy city, where schools regularly stay open through snowstorms that would completely shut down other urban centers. It's typical for the entire city to be coated in un-melted snow for a whole winter, with a massive melt coming in spring.</p><p>But this year, Chicago has gone the entirety of January and February without any snow on the ground - and isn't expected to before the month closes Tuesday night. According to the local National Weather Service Station, that's a first in the city's&#xa0;146-year record.</p><p>Of course, the unusually warm weather hasn't been concentrated in Chicago. NOAA hasn't yet released its official report on the month's weather (usually the third coldest, after January and December), but much of the East Coast and Midwest has <a href="https://weather.com/forecast/national/news/warm-temperatures-spring-fever-mid-february-presidents-day">experienced unusual or record-breaking warmth</a>. Thousands of warmth record&#xa0;were set across the country between February 17 and 24, with just 41 cold records in the same period.</p><p>Still, a snowless January and February in Chicago is a truly shocking development.</p><div></div>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/arctic-sea-ice-thinner-past-26-years-foreboding-animation-noaa-video-2016-12">This startling animation shows how much Arctic sea ice has thinned in just 26 years</a></h3>        <div>            <div>        <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="Jqb2k5ODE619TsBzQ3m8ryeVKgcEyosd" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>        </div>        </div>            </div>

You Searched For "snowless period" and got 4 results

Snow has returned to the Om Parvat in Uttarakhand after completely disappearing from the peak for the first time

BI India Bureau

What the snow-less mountain that will host the 2022 Beijing Olympics looks like in the middle of winter

Tony Manfred

Kashmir's dry spell likely to end next week

PTI

Chicago is 1 day away from breaking a weather streak that's lasted 146 years

Rafi Letzter

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