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Are you a fan of winter with its chilling breeze and snow-covered roads that make life and everything else appear slow and static? Well, you may enjoy occasional cold weather with all the warm beverages to your rescue, but there are places on Earth that become insanely cold. The top 10 coldest places in the world include remote villages like Oymyakon in Russian Siberia where temperature drops to a scary -90 F/ -68 C. Imagine living in such extreme weather! Surprisingly enough, people have survived in such cold habitats in the past and continue to do so in many places from Canada to Kazakhstan.
We know you must be on the edge of your seat by now thinking which are the top 10 coldest places in the world. Scroll down to learn about some of the coldest cities on earth, and if you ever visit them, ensure to carry enough thermals with you.
Here arethe coldest places in the world we bet you didn’t know about
1. Greenland Ice Sheet, Greenland
Among the coldest places in the world, the Greenland Ice Sheet stands at a height of 3,100 meters. In December 1991, Greenland recorded a temperature of −69.6 °C (−93.3 °F) making it the coldest temperature ever recorded in the Northern Hemisphere (beating Oymyakon’s record of being the coldest place in the region). Owing to the extreme weather conditions, the region is sparsely populated, people mostly inhabit South and West Greenland where living and supply conditions are comparatively easier.
2. Vostok Base, Antarctica
The Vostok Base in Antarctica is shared by America, France and Russia. This is one of the coldest cities in the world situated at a height of 3,100 meters. With an average temperature of -65°C, and a minimum temperature of less than -70°C, the Vostok Base is scantly populated (just 25-30 engineers and scientists live here during summer and around 15 of them live here in winter). The base station is located on Lake Vostok, which is protected by over a kilometre of thick ice. Because of the extreme cold weather, there is less oxygen here, making the place further inhabitable.
3. Verkhoyansk, Russia
Verkhoyansk in Sakha Republic, Russia, is one of the coldest places in the world. It holds the record for being the coldest place in Asia. In 1885, Verkhoyansk recorded its coldest temperature of −67.8 °C (−90.0 °F). However, in 2020, Verkhoyansk also recorded its summertime peak temperature of 38 °C. As of 2010, 1311 people were living in Verkhoyansk, a place primarily known for its cold weather.
4. Denali, USA
The tallest mountain in North America, Denali or Mount McKinley is one of the coldest places in the world that rises to a height of 6190.4 meters. Located in the cold state of Alaska, Denali recorded a lowest temperature of −75.5 °F/−59.7 °C) in December 2003. The region is inhabited by several native and indigenous people who primarily rely on hunting and gathering for sustenance.
Snug
Snug is a village in the Yukon Territory of Canada, often regarded among the most coldest places in the world. The village is no longer inhabited by people and is mostly in ruins. It is located nearer to Mount Logan (the highest mountain in Canada) but at a higher altitude, making it cooler than Fort Selkirk.
Astana, Kazakhstan
Astana, the futuristic capital city on the banks of the Ishim River in the north-central part of Kazakhstan, is equipped with ideal living amenities, robust architecture, shopping and entertainment centres, and glittering mosques. With the lowest recorded temperature of -61 F/ -51.5 C, the city’s river largely remains frozen between mid-November and early April. Although Astana is one of the coldest cities on earth, it is still an easy city to live in, considering the facilities and socialising options available here.
Prospect Creek
Prospect Creek in Alaska, USA is one of the most coldest places in the world. The Gates of the Arctic National Park, are just 50 km to the north of Prospect Creek because of which the area experiences an arctic climate. The lowest temperature recorded here was −79.8 °F/−62.1 °C in January 1971. With some of the coldest winters recorded in US History, Prospect Creek currently remains without a human population. However, there are about 1,500 individuals with the authorization to live within the Arctic National Park on a basic level.