[imagesource: Needpix]

East Asia is in the throes of an intense cold wave, with temperatures plunging beyond belief reported across China, Korea, and Japan.

It has been so cold that one of China’s northernmost cities broke its lowest-ever recorded temperature.

The mercury hit -53°C at 7AM on Monday in Mohe, Heilongjiang province.

The area is known as ‘China’s North Pole’ thanks to its subarctic climate, nestled near Russia’s Siberia region, with temperatures that can easily plunge to -68°C, although a temperature of -50°C is rare.

The Independent reports that people are blown away by the freezing cold:

Residents in the wider area are describing spine-chilling details of the harsh winter conditions as 12 weather stations in Heilongjiang alone report temperatures close to or below their own low-temperature records this week.

One resident told Kanji Video that within 10 seconds of going outside, his hands had already started to feel numb.

The risk of getting frostbite as you go outside is an incredible realisation of the cold, along with the reality of eggs freezing within seconds and the walls becoming covered in vertical snow.

A viral video from China’s state broadcaster CCTV shows how an egg’s yolk froze within seconds when a reporter tried breaking it on an outdoor surface in Mohe:

Temperatures in the city of Mohe, China, reached between -58°F and -63°F on January 24, one of the coldest recorded temperatures in human history. The weather was so cold, a yolk instantly froze when a TV correspondent attempted to crack an egg on the air. pic.twitter.com/rN3AIPKGtX

— NowThis (@nowthisnews) January 24, 2023

Another video shows how water freezes instantly on any surface, with a thick layer of ice forming on vertical walls and doors:

黑龙江漠河的冰雪城堡 pic.twitter.com/fjJefOB78l

— ChinaNews JayPro (@JayPro_China) January 24, 2023

Because visibility has become so hazardous, residents say there are hardly any people venturing outside their homes.

“It becomes hazy about 100m in front of you, you can’t see anyone,” one resident said.

In fact, Xu Liling, head of the Mohe meteorological station, has advised people to stay indoors as much as possible.

While the area is familiar with freezing conditions, the extra notch down in degrees really complicates life:

Experts say living under minus -50C can be extremely dangerous, and potentially life-threatening, if proper precautions aren’t taken. Most areas of the globe where temperatures fall below these levels aren’t suitable for permanent human settlement.

Anything at -20°C or lower is a major cause for concern:

At -20C it takes around half an hour to develop frostbite and aspects of daily life, such as going for a walk, become increasingly difficult. However, when it comes to temperatures below as low as -50C, the difference becomes “painful” and frostbite occurs in just 2-5 minutes, Dr Watzl explains to ABC News.

“You go from bitterly cold to painfully cold, almost immediately,” he said. “It’s painful to even be outside. Anything that is exposed to the wind becomes painful and frostbite develops in 2 to 5 minutes. Just breathing can be painful because you’re breathing really cold air straight into your lungs.”

Frostbite can result in permanent tissue damage and may require amputation of fingers, toes, feet, hands and even larger parts of the arm or leg.

Residents living in such harsh conditions say the only option is to take sensible precautions or “suffer”.

Winters in Mohe are generally eight months long and begin in early October, often lasting until May.

And you thought those cold plunges in Cape Town’s waters were cold.

[source:independent]