Baghdad Gets Snow for the First Time in 100 Years

On early Friday morning, a light snow fell on the city of Baghdad, a phenomenon not experienced by the Iraqi city in about 100 years. Other rare snowfalls were also reported in the west and center of Iraq, where temperatures fell to 32 degrees Fahrenheit (0 degrees Centigrade) and lower.

The snow that fell in Baghdad, however, was short-lived. The snow melted almost immediately as it touched the ground. The snow began falling just before dawn, and continued until after 9am.

Iraqi weather officials issued the following statement:

"Snow has fallen in Baghdad for the first time in about a century as a result of two air flows meeting. The first one was cold and dry and the second one was warm and humid. They met above Iraq."

However, Dawood Shakir, director of the meterology department in Iraq, said that climate change may be due to the rare event:

"It's very rare. Baghdad has never seen snow falling in living memory. These snowfalls are linked to the climate change that is happening everywhere. We are finding some places in the world which are warm and are supposed to be cold."