Although located at the same latitude as Ketchikan on North America's west coast or Moscow, Scotland and southern Scandinavia in Europe, the influence of the Labrador Current gives Nain a marginal subarctic climate (Dfc) that is very close to a polar climate (ET), which creates the southernmost tree line in the northern hemisphere on the adjacent coast.
The southernmost tundra is actually still in a zone of discontinuous permafrost rather than the much more typical continuous zone.
The almost constant presence of the Icelandic Low means that precipitation, both as rain and snow, is exceptionally heavy for so consistently cold a climate in a low-lying area, with 5 metres (16 ft) of snow falling each winter.
The actual depth of snow on the ground averages 1.13 metres (44 in) at the end of March.
Although located at the same latitude as Ketchikan on North America's west coast or Moscow, Scotland and southern Scandinavia in Europe, the influence of the Labrador Current gives Nain a marginal subarctic climate (Dfc) that is very close to a polar climate (ET), which creates the southernmost tree line in the northern hemisphere on the adjacent coast. The southernmost tundra is actually still in a zone of discontinuous permafrost rather than the much more typical continuous zone. The almost constant presence of the Icelandic Low means that precipitation, both as rain and snow, is exceptionally heavy for so consistently cold a climate in a low-lying area, with 5 metres (16 ft) of snow falling each winter. The actual depth of snow on the ground averages 1.13 metres (44 in) at the end of March.
Nain, Newfoundland and Labrador