Unusual Snowfall in Johannesburg Sparks Climate Change Concerns

So thanks so much for your time. So just give us the exact detail, just in terms of the last time we saw snow to this magnitude, but I suppose more importantly, what was driving it? Good afternoon and thanks for having me. Yes, we have received some snowfall reports, especially over areas of the southern parts of Gauteng that would cover the areas of Soweto, spreading over to the central parts of Johannesburg, where we see some snow over Senti and Rosebank areas, spreading over further and further into Randberg. So yes, the last time we experienced snow was in August 2012, which would be the days between the 7th and 8th, and that was the magnitude of the kind that we're seeing now. So yes, we have some sleet and sometimes we have some snow, and the sleet would be the rain that freezes as the precipitation happens. But then in this instance, we did receive much of the snow, especially over the East Rand, where there are areas of Heidelberg and some areas spreading over into Takane and some areas back into Fos Loras, where we're seeing some snow early in the morning. Sure. I mean, for most South Africans, it's pretty great, the sight. I mean, the fact that one doesn't have to travel over to Europe or in other parts of North America to witness snow. You can witness it here in Africa, but it speaks to also perhaps a more problematic issue, the fact that the climate has already changed, as we do speak about the effects of climate change and the impacts that it will have on the environment. How serious of an issue is it then, in your view, the fact that we are experiencing such cold temperatures in such a warm part of the world? You know, if we speak about that, we recently have seen a seasonal forecast that suggests an El Nino anticipated for the summer months. And with that happening, there was also a positive Indian Ocean measurement that was showing that most of the areas are looking at changing from a La Nina season. But if you look at the La Nina season, it has happened or occurred for the past three years, which was influencing much more of the weather. And the cycle then takes more than about three to 12 months to end, even if it's after La Nina. So we've been under a wet condition weather, but also with extremes of rainfall and heavy rain, depending on where the area is. But adjacent to the Pacific Ocean, which is where the answer is measured, we see that there was also an increase in the terms of how likely rainfall happens. And with it now we are receiving snow. And with these conditions happening, there was a cold front that was very strong, which pushed in. And as it moved further east, the cold conditions behind it were pushed in by a high pressure system. And in the upper air, we had an upper air trough, which was very strong, which was also intensifying the colder conditions. However, in areas over the central and the southern parts of Gauteng, it's not only limited to that, that we see cold conditions. Most of the parts of the country are cold. But if you spread further into the northeastern parts, we still had to expect much more of the light snow over areas of Mbomalanga, which would also include areas around Dahlstrom and areas around Belfast. Western parts of KZN, we had to still also experience some snow, especially over the Trankensberg and the mountainous areas there, also not forgetting the areas of Anderberg. So with correlation with the seasonal forecast, usually with also an upcoming El Niño, yes, we get less of precipitation, especially over the eastern parts of the country. However, we don't, it doesn't limit us to the extreme weather such as the ones that we're experiencing now. So with an upcoming El Niño, we are yet to have experienced extreme weather, but with less precipitation. Okay. I suppose it also raises a whole lot of questions as to the degree and the type of El Niño that we'll have this time around. I mean, if we've got conditions like this going into it, certainly the experts who have been saying that it's not going to be as hot and as severe as the last El Niño in 2016 are being proven right. Thanks so much for your time. We'll leave it there. So let's talk another meteorologist from the South African Weather Service.

CNBC Africa is joined by Lehlohonolo Thobela, Meteorologist from the South African Weather Services.

Climate change causes snow in Johannesburg

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Climate change causes snow in Johannesburg

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