Temperatures:

During December, temperatures averaged below normal over much of Central Asia. A significant decrease in temperatures occurred during the middle period of the month, with a departure from the average exceeding -8 degrees Celsius across northern Central Asia. During the next week, a slightly warmer than average weather is forecast in northern Kazakhstan, while well below normal temperatures are expected across central and northeastern Afghanistan.

Minimum temperatures could fall below -30 degrees Celsius over the central highlands and northeast mountains of Afghanistan.

Precipitation:

Snow depth and coverage have experienced a significant increase due to enhanced precipitation over the past three weeks. During the past week, widespread, light to moderate (10–40 mm liquid equivalent) precipitation fell across southern Turkmenistan, southern Uzbekistan, and the northern and eastern provinces of Afghanistan. Meanwhile, little to no precipitation fell in western Tajikistan, maintaining dryness that has resulted from an inconsistent precipitation distribution since the beginning of the season. For next week, dry (< 10 mm liquid equivalent) weather is forecast across much of Central Asia, except the western half of Kazakhstan and localized areas of Turkmenistan and Afghanistan.