Snow and snowstorms to sweep Mongolia west to east on Oct. 15–17, with a sharp cold snap

Snow, wet snow and snowstorms are forecast to move across Mongolia from west to east over the next three days, with a sharp drop in temperatures, according to the National Agency for Meteorology and Environmental Monitoring, as reported by Tovch.mn and Mongoliin Unen. The west is affected on October 15, the central region on the 16th and the east on the 17th.

Where and when

Snow is expected to begin overnight into the 15th in much of Bayan-Ulgii and Uvs and parts of Khovd and Zavkhan. On the 15th it extends to most of Uvs, Khovd and Zavkhan and parts of Bayan-Ulgii, Govi-Altai, Khuvsgul, Arkhangai and western Bulgan; on the 16th to most of Khuvsgul, Arkhangai, Bulgan and Selenge and parts of Uvurkhangai, Tuv, Dundgovi and Khentii; and on the 17th to parts of Khuvsgul, Arkhangai, Uvurkhangai, Tuv, Selenge, Khentii, Dundgovi, Dornod and Sukhbaatar, with 0-11 mm of rain, wet snow or snow and snowstorms. Light snow is expected in parts of Uvs, Zavkhan, Khuvsgul and Dornod on the 18th.

Wind and cold

Winds of 15-17 metres per second are forecast in the western half on the 15th, across most areas on the 16th and in the Gobi and steppe on the 17th, raising dust storms. Temperatures will fall in the west and centre on the 16th and in most areas on the 17th-18th, with nights of -15 to -20°C around Uvs Lake, the Darkhad depression, the Mongol Altai and the upper Zavkhan and Zag-Baidrag rivers, and -10 to -15°C in the Khangai, Khuvsgul and Khentii mountains and the Tuul, Terelj and Kherlen valleys.

The weather agency is urging herders, hay-makers, transport operators and farmers to take particular care. Anyone planning long-distance travel should check road conditions and updated forecasts regularly.

The warning was also widely shared on X overnight, along with photos of the first snow in Khuvsgul.

Sources: National Agency for Meteorology and Environmental Monitoring (via Tovch.mn and Mongoliin Unen); posts on X (metrics as of 02:30 Oct 15, UB time).