July 26, 2021 - Frigid weather in South Africa
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South Africa shivered under frigid winter weather as snow—and minimum
temperature records—fell across the country in late July 2021.
According to the South African Weather Service (SAWS), a series of cold
fronts sweeping across the country were responsible for the falling
temperatures, gusting winds, and snow. The first cold front brought
strong north-westerly winds and rain to the southwestern parts of South
Africa on July 19, with precipitation in the form of snow along with
bitterly cold temperatures inland.
A second, more intense cold front escorted even colder temperatures
across much of the country beginning on July 21. On July 23, local
media reported that nineteen records were smashed over the previous 24
hours, with several parts of South Africa recording their lowest
minimum or maximum temperature in recorded history. On that day,
temperatures in Kimberly (Northern Cape province) dropped to -9.9˚C
(14˚F) and Johannesburg (Gauteng province) saw -7˚C (19.4˚F). In the
Eastern Cape, the town of Grahamstown reported a maximum temperature of
only 6.8˚C (44˚F).
The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) acquired a
true-color image of a sunny but frigid day in South Africa on July 23.
Snow sits atop higher elevations of most of the mountain ranges in the
country. A broad swath of snow also paints the karoo white south of
Sutherland, Northern Cape province.
Image Facts
Satellite: Terra
Date Acquired: 7/23/2021
Resolutions: 1km (205.8 KB), 500m (540 KB), 250m (356.8 KB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit: MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
https://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov/gallery/individual.php?db_date=2021-07-26
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