Evening star., 1942-08-26
Long Russian Winter
Nears, but Won't Stop
Hitler in Caucasus
Mud and Cold Which
Aided Reds at Moscow
Missing in South
By EDDY GILMORE


MOSCOW, Aug. ga sharp wind
whistled down the streets and a
shuddering chambermaid slammed
shut the windows, muttering:
"Osien We vozdukhe."
That mouthful means: Autumn
Is in the air"
The long Russian winter is on Its
way.
In lots Of places winter is Just
winter, but in Russia-as in no other
place on earth-it is something that
you conquer, or 1t conquers you.
Hitler found out a lot about 1t last
year, as Napoleon learned 50 pain
fully more than a century before.
This year Hitler launched his Of
fensive in South Russia for two
reasons: He wanted oil and he
wanted to escape the Russian WIN
ter.
Unfortunately, winter would not
be great ally of the Red Army in
the south as 1t was before Moscow.
The weather there except in the
Autumn Dry in Caucasus.
In Tiflis, beyond the 18,00O-fo
ranges, the mean temperature in
January is 80 degrees Fahrenheit.
At Baku it is 38 and at Batum, 43.
Nor can rain and the bottomless
mud that first stopped Hitler's army
last fall be looked on to help stop
German tanks in the Caucasus.
For the most part, the rainy sea-
son in the Caucasus comes in early
summer. Except in the Black Sea
ports, autumn is pretty dry. At Pro-
khladnenski and similar places In
the northern slopes of the Caucasus
where fighting now Is in progress
rainfall is more abundant in sum-
mer, but autumn Is unusually dry.
The North Caucasus weather gen.
orally is similar to that of the AS
trakhan region, but the winters
here can be severe, with the mer-
curry tumbling to Is degrees Fab
renheit. Freezes start in the north
and central Caucasus about Decem-
Der and continue for three months.
On the Black Sea and Caspian win
ter does not arrive until January /.
The coolest Russian climate is in
the northWest--said to be the coldest
spot in the world. Places like Lenin-
grad start freezing up about No
vember /, and the mercury keeps re-
ceding for 140 days and the snow
piles II to % inches high, keeping
all but ski s'immobilized. The
Gulf OF Finland freezes over, para
lying shipping.
Winter Bebins November l.
Around Moscow winters first
blows are felt about November /,
and fur hats appear. From Moscow
to Leningrad the weather is far
below freezing for 130 days, with ay-
erage snow piled 20 inches high.
From Moscow to Stalingrad freez-
ing starts from the middle OF No.
vember to late that month, and the
snow is only about half as heavy
The first SHOWS between Moscow and
Astrakhan, at the mouth of the
| Volga, fall toward the end of Oc-
| tober
The first real snowstorm in Mos
COW last year started on November 7
and the ground was covered until
late spring.
Murmansk, the ice-free port
through which the bulk of Allied
supplies is funneled, is warmer than
the Finnish front because of the
Gulf Stream. but freezes start there
late in October, and the snow piles
| to "a inches.
The other major Allied supply port
OF Archangel on an estuary of the
Dvina River starts getting ice around
| OCTOBER IL and can be kept open
| by lce-breakers until january
Then 1t is frozen solid with 3 feet
OF ice until the late May thaw.