As snowstorms batter the west, the Himalayas hardly see winter

As snowstorms batter the west, the Himalayas hardly see winter

Over the first few weeks of 2026, intense snowstorms and freezing rain in the northern hemisphere caused major disruptions in power and transport across North America and Europe, resulting in over 60 deaths in the US alone. Yet in the southern part of the world, high-elevation areas such as the Himalayas have been experiencing “snow droughts”. Through December 2025 and much of January, parts of the mountain range were snowless, with no sign of a…