Coldest European Winter in 1,000 Years? Weather Channel Says Not So Much

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Forecasters in Russia are predicting that this winter will be the coldest in Europe and parts of the former Soviet Union in 1,000 years. Yes, the worst in a millennium; the coldest since Leif Ericson landed in North America, since the Hutu came to present-day Rwanda, and only a few centuries before the birth of Andy Rooney.

The forecast is attributed to a weakening Gulf Stream, which brings warm air across the Atlantic Ocean to battle against Arctic winds traveling southward to Europe and Russia. Scientists have been concerned about a less powerful stream for a few years, and some experts even say it could help the earth fight global warming.

But the coldest in 1,000 years?

“That forecast seems highly speculative and sensationalistic without substantiation,” says the amusingly alliterative Weather Channel Meteorologist Stu Ostro. “Precise temperature records aren’t even available all the way back to 1,000 years ago.”

Well put, Stu.

I guess we’ll all find out soon enough. Suffice it to say, NewsFeed is glad to be on a separate continent.