"Alpine Slopes Face Snow Shortage In Unseasonably Warm Winter"

"GENEVA — Much of the Alps just don’t look right for this time of year. Sparse snowfall and unseasonably warm winter weather in Europe’s central mountains are allowing grass to blanket hillsides across the region, causing headaches for ski slope operators and aficionados of Alpine white.

Patches of grass, rock and dirt were visible Monday in some of Europe’s skiing meccas — like Innsbruck in Austria, Villars-sur-Ollon and Crans-Montana in Switzerland, and Germany’s Lenggries and far beyond. The dearth of snow has revived concerns about temperature upheaval linked to climate change.

On a swath stretching from France to Poland, but with the Alps at the center, many parts of Europe were enjoying short-sleeve weather. A weather map showed Poland racking up daily highs in the double digits Celsius — or more than 50 Fahrenheit — in recent days."

Jamey Keaten and John Leicester report for the Associated Press January 2, 2023.

SEE ALSO:

"Thousands Of Records Shattered In Historic Winter Warm Spell In Europe" (Washington Post)

Source: AP, 01/03/2023