snowpack · Japan
Sapporo, Hokkaido
Seasonal total snowfall
Modelled demonstration series · not observed data
Sapporo is one of the snowiest large cities on Earth and it has built its budget, its infrastructure and part of its identity around that. The mechanism that produces the snow depends on the sea staying cold enough to freeze the moisture out. Warm that water and the same storms deliver rain.
75 years, modelled
Same reading, two normals
| Normal | Mean | σ | Pct | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1951–1980 | 590 cm | −0.90σ | 18th | 1 in 5.4 years |
| 1991–2020 | 526 cm | −0.23σ | 41st | 1 in 2.4 years |
Today would rank 27 of 76 for lowest value in the modelled series. Nothing about the reading changes between rows — only the yardstick.
The season here
Sapporo's snow comes off the Sea of Japan: cold Siberian air crosses relatively warm water and unloads on the first land it meets.
Where this series comes from
MODELLED SERIES — not observed. Parameters set from published Sapporo seasonal snowfall climatology. The 75 annual values are synthesised by the seeded generator.
Every number on this page comes from a modelled series: 75 annual values synthesised by a seeded generator from published climatological parameters for Sapporo, Hokkaido. It shows how anomaly reasoning works. It is not a measurement and must not be cited as one.
How to read σ
σ counts standard deviations from this place's own normal. The sigma guide · return periods.
More snowpack stations
Open Sapporo on the field →