Chao News client reporter Fang Li.
As of December 23, West Lake has been frozen for three consecutive days
Among them, on December 22, the lowest temperature in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province was -54, the coldest winter solstice in history, and at the same time set a new low temperature this year.
As the freezing pattern becomes more intense, the ice in West Lake is more extensive and the ice layer is significantly thicker, and the autumn leaves and dead lotus can be clearly seen through the ice surface. Many citizens and tourists rushed to check in and take pictures, and even the old Hangzhou was saying that such a "frozen West Lake" had not been seen for many years.
2023.12 West Lake is icing Photo by Lille.
2023.12 West Lake is icing Photo by Lille.
Do you remember the ice that froze on the West Lake in those years, and you could even walk on the West Lake in January 1977. Why is ice in West Lake relatively rare?Why is it so difficult to reproduce the all-frozen landscape?
The latest news, this wave of low temperature freezing is coming to an end, and the recovery is imminent. Temperatures rose slightly during the day. Especially from December 26, the temperature in our province will rise significantly.
In 1977, "it's good to skate on the West Lake".
Since December 21, Hangzhou has been below minus 3 for two consecutive days, causing obvious ice on the shore of West Lake. ”
In the past two days, Ye Chun, chief service officer of Hangzhou Meteorological Information Center, visited West Lake and conducted a comprehensive analysis based on meteorological data.
He found that the location of the ice was quite "exquisite".
On December 21, the West Lake froze, basically within the range of Xili Lake and Beili Lake, and most of them were on the shore of the West Lake, and on the 22nd, the ice range of the West Lake was significantly larger, and the ice layer was thicker.
As we all know, West Lake is divided into Outer West Lake, Xili Lake, Beili Lake, Xiaonan Lake and Yue Lake according to the size of the area, among which the Outer West Lake has the largest area. To the north of the White Causeway of West Lake is "Beili Lake", and to the west of the Su Causeway is called "Xili Lake". According to Ye Chun's analysis, the area of these two lakes is not large, backed by mountains, the influence of west and north winds is small, the wind is weak, the lake surface is relatively calm, and the temperature is 1 to 2 lower than that of Waixi Lake, so the shore is most likely to freeze in winter.
The ice of the West Lake is not common, especially the large-scale freezing of the Outer West Lake, the number of times is very small, only the particularly cold and cold weather will appear, and the ice is usually only a thin layer of ice, the thicker the ice, the colder the weather. Ye Chun said.
The most famous time the West Lake froze was in 1977, which was known as "good skating on the West Lake" at that time. In January 1977, the entire West Lake was covered with thick ice, which lasted for more than 20 days, and people could walk on the lake.
Judging from the meteorological data, the freezing weather was very severe at that time, and the minimum temperature in Hangzhou fell to -86. This record of extreme low temperatures has never been broken. Also in this year, there was a lot of snow in Hangzhou.
In 1977, the West Lake froze, and many people went directly to the Three Pools and the Moon. *Provided by: Huang Xiaoming.
The West Lake is frozen, and several conditions need to be met
Many years later, in 2008, there was another large area of ice in West Lake, but the ice surface was very thin. At that time, except for the inner West Lake (Xili Lake, Beili Lake) with a thick layer of ice, the Outer West Lake that citizens see every day is still sparkling.
There was also a freeze in 2010.
On the whole, the ice in West Lake is getting thinner, the area is getting smaller and smaller, and the time is getting shorter and shorter.
It must be mentioned here that from January 23 to 26, 2016, Hangzhou suffered extremely cold weather. The minimum temperature was below 0 for 4 consecutive days, of which the lowest temperature in Hangzhou was -8 on January 252. There is a thick layer of ice on the shore of the West Lake, but there is still no ice on the West Lake.
Ye Chun said that combined with meteorological data, the wind on the surface of West Lake was strong in those days, and the maximum daily wind speed reached 106 meters a second, the surface of the lake has been turbulent, the warm lake water at the bottom of the lake has turned upside down, although the temperature is low enough, but the lake is still difficult to freeze.
The last time ice was more pronounced was at the end of January 2018. At that time, the lowest temperature in Hangzhou was -44. The waters of the three pools in the center of the West Lake have been frozen on a large scale.
According to Ye Chun's analysis, the occurrence of this rare icing condition is precisely because Hangzhou met the "additional conditions" of small winds and calm waves on the lake surface on the basis of keeping the temperature below 0 for many consecutive days.
In addition to the temperature being low enough, other conditions such as wind speed, humidity, low temperature duration, water depth, and water flow rate must be met at the same time to have the possibility of freezing.
The West Lake is completely frozen, why is it difficult to reproduce
In fact, after 1977, the whole lake froze again.
Whether from a climatic point of view or from the West Lake itself, some objective changes are taking place. Ye Chun said that under the general trend of global warming, in recent decades, the winter temperature in Hangzhou has generally shown an upward trend, the winter is getting warmer and warmer, the winter time in the meteorological sense is also shortening, the number of snowfalls in Hangzhou has also been greatly reduced, and the duration of low temperature freezing is getting shorter and shorter.
Hangzhou appeared once except in 2016 - 8In addition to the low temperature of 2, the probability of a minimum temperature below -8 is getting lower.
For the whole lake to freeze, the temperature needs to be low enough and last at least a week. In 1977, when the West Lake was completely frozen, for 14 days, the minimum temperature in Hangzhou was lower than -2 for 10 days, and the minimum temperature was lower than -4 for 8 days. ”
In addition, the water depth and flow rate of the West Lake are also changing.
After the founding of the People's Republic of China, the West Lake has undergone three dredging to remove silt, and now the average water depth of the West Lake is more than two meters, which is much deeper than in 1977. In addition, the water of the West Lake has been changed once a month, and 400,000 cubic meters of Qiantang River water is introduced every day, and the water is constantly flowing, which also makes it difficult for the surface of the West Lake to freeze. Ye Chun said.
In those years, we chased the "Ice West Lake".
At that time, many people said that they could walk from a park to the three pools and the moon. "In 1977, Hong Lihua, a native of Hangzhou, still remembers this fact that you can walk on the ice of West Lake. She was 15 years old that year, "I don't know how much colder it is than this year, I didn't dare to go to the West Lake, afraid of falling in case of falling down", but there are still many people who walked to the lake ** to take pictures.
Han Wah Qiang was 20 years old that year. Zhejiang** and Qianjiang Evening News have memories of his winter swimming that year:
Early that morning, I was swimming in the Winter at the Liuhe Tower, and the passengers on the bus were all looking at me with their heads brushed. The area around Su Causeway is frozen to the end. There were very few people, and when the three of us rode to the three pools of the moon, the ice began to thin and the ice under the wheels began to rattle. When I went to the lakeside, there were a lot of people, and there was a person riding a small three-wheeler, and there was a big fat man sitting behind him, holding a child in his hand, and he was not careful, and fell into the ice hole. ”
Hanwha Qiang in January 1977.
Hangzhou photography enthusiast "Lille" has photographed the ice of West Lake for more than 10 years. Every winter, he would go to squat, and he remembered that the earliest freezing of West Lake was generally in the Qiuyue Lotus Pond in Pinghu Lake and the Lotus Pond in Hougushan. "This year, I was pleasantly surprised by the different forms of ice. In the past two days, he photographed the beautiful lotus pond ice flowers, the spectacular West Lake ice ridge, and the proud "lotus power".
2023.12 West Lake Bingling Photo by Lille.
2023.12 Lotus pond ice flower photo by Lille.
In the past, it was normal for the West Lake to freeze, but in recent years, the water in the West Lake has become deeper, and the flow (water exchange) has increased, making it more difficult to freeze. For him, there are not many days when Hangzhou West Lake is frozen, and these pictures taken this year are precious, and it may also be that West Lake has special feelings for Hangzhou people.
Ms. Wang, a native of Taizhou, has lived in Hangzhou for more than 20 years.
2016.1. Near the Majestic Hotel in Kinmen One Park Photo courtesy of the interviewee.
At the end of January 2016, Hangzhou was hit by extreme cold, the coldest weather she can remember, and her children's schools were closed, so she took her children to the West Lake to see the ice.
It was the first time a 7-year-old had seen ice in the true sense of the word in Hangzhou. Ms. Wang felt that everything by the lake was wrapped in a piece of ice crystals, and the benches for visitors to take a nap were dressed in a layer of ice armorThe grass on the grass became crystal ballsClumps of holly trees, half of which are close to the lake, have become verdant ice sculptures;Tree branches, guardrails, and the bottom of the bridge are hung with long, sharp ice cube ......"I've seen clear lakes, rain lakes, and snow lakes, no matter what kind of weather, West Lake is always elegant and gentle, never as magical and dazzling as this. ”
2016.1. Near the Majestic Hotel in Kinmen One Park Photo courtesy of the interviewee.
2016.1. Near the Majestic Hotel in Kinmen One Park Photo courtesy of the interviewee.
2016.1. Near the Majestic Hotel in Kinmen One Park Photo courtesy of the interviewee.
Now that the child is in the third year of junior high school, "I hope that the child can remember the rare snowy and frozen days in the winter in the south of the Yangtze River, remember the unique joy and joy of winter, and hope that he can always maintain his awe and compassion for nature." ”
2023.12 Lonely Mountain Photo courtesy of the interviewee.
*Please indicate the source".