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Comment by pikma | Hacker News Reader

Anybody here had experience dealing with that kind of cold? I'm curious how people deal with with. Is that something that good equipment can protect against or is it just too cold?

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I lived in the Yukon for 4 years, rode my bike to work every day of the year, it was often past -40C/F in winter. With good clothing that was perfectly fine, and I enjoyed it. Watching the steam and huge chunks of ice on the Yukon river is a sight to behold. Also seeing the northern lights on the way to work at 8am is great, as-is seeing the lights or stars again at 4pm.

With far from the best gear I can stand around outside happily down to about -30C. Past that, I need to be near a fire, or moving (snowshoeing, riding, cutting wood) to stay warm to about -40C/F. After that I have to really move to stay warm enough for a long period of time. Once I was caribou hunting just below the Arctic Circle in late November (the sun only came up for about an hour) and it was something like -50C (-58F). Try as I might, I never did warm up even jogging on the spot, jumping jacks, etc. etc.

In the north most people don't even really consider will chill, because it's kind of meaningless - it officially has no units and is an estimate at best. Northerns take pride in being "tough" and most people say stuff like "Wild Chill is for people who get cold", or something similar.

So there were many days the actual temp was -46C (-50F), and if the wind was coming from the North it was stupid cold. The will chill would have been well past -60C (-76F), but nobody talks about it. On those days it's very hard to be outside for long, and exposed skin is an absolute no-no. If I took my two layers of gloves off to do anything I'd lose feeling in my fingers for hours and they really, really hurt.

Interestingly, the temperature between night and day only changes a degree or two - the sun makes virtually no difference, even though the colder it gets the clearer it gets. I grew up in Australia, yet the most stunning blue sky days of my life were in the Yukon past -40C/F.

I lived not too far from Snag, Yukon, the coldest ever recorded place in North America at -63C/-81F [1]

I should also add that Yukon has no concept of "too cold for school" or work, or anything like that. It's perfectly normal to go to school or work when it's below -40C/F, everyone just deals with it. It's amusing when it warms up to -20C or -30C and it feels comparatively balmy!

[1] https://www.gi.alaska.edu/alaska-science-forum/coldest-place...

I saw the mercury drop from -25C to -35C on the bus from Changchun to Haerbin once (the buses, for some reason, had digital outside temperature thermometers up front). I was dressed for it well enough, but I didn’t keep my phone or camera warm enough, so I didn’t get many pictures of the ice sculptures I went to see. Too far south for northern lights though, weird it would get that cold at that latitude.

Northeast Asia has perfect conditions for terrible winters. Continental climate (so it gets extremely cold), the prevailing winds don't bring in moisture, and the Siberian anticyclone just adds to the frigid ambiance.

Why would a phone or camera need to be warm?

Batteries aren't designed for such low temperatures.

I thought one of the advantages of lithium cells over other chemistries was cold temperature performance.

Lithium batteries have really really bad performance in cold weather(not even talking -40, like 32 degrees for 10 minutes out and your phone will absolutely shrivel)

In the coldest days of NYC winters my Nexus 6p would reboot if I tried to use the camera. In cold conditions lithium batteries have difficulty keeping voltage steady when there's a sudden amperage spike from turning on the camera hardware. If it gets even colder just turning on the screen can cause the voltage to drop enough that the phone will malfunction.

frozen lenses

I spend hours outside at -10F skiing… it’s usually some of the best conditions (partly because nobody is there). I’m not just warm, but pretty much as comfortable as being inside.

I was also out last night in -20F taking the dog out before bed, I’ve got a full-body arctic suit for such occasions (and he does too).

Good cold weather gear is pricey, but it makes all the difference. It lasts for a long time, so it’s a good investment if you have to deal with these temps during the year.

No experience, but this story of the “Maine hermit” who lived in a tent in central Maine for decades is still amazing to me.

https://www.gq.com/story/the-last-true-hermit/

Wow thank you for sharing! This is incredible!

There is a book about it as well, from now maybe a few years back. Goes Into far more details, and quite a nice read.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30687200-the-stranger-in...

https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20048389W/The_stranger_in_th...

I’d run across a courtyard in a tshirt when it was -40 for fun. Invigorating :)

Yes, managing being outside in the -40s is doable with above average equipment but nothing crazy. Good insulation isn’t all that hard. I have a coat that I have to have unzipped at 0F because I get hot.

100 mph winds on the side of a mountain is a challenge at any temperature.

When is that cold you just have to be careful or a mistake can lead to permanent damage in seconds or minutes, the cold will kill you easily and you’re just very aware of it when you’re out in it. Surviving isn’t hard but deadly mistakes are also easy.

It also has a lot to do with attitude. If you think it’s the worst suffering it will be.

You’ll want insulated boots, thick wool socks, insulated pants, a parka, layers under the parka, gloves with mittens over, face covering, hat.

Keeping your face, head, and feet warm are the most important. Next is much torso insulation.

Not a ton, but I've done it. The basic approach: wool, wool, thinsulate if you're fancy, more wool, in layers. Something that effectively blocks the wind on top. No cotton. Good boots and gloves. Make sure you've got no exposed skin.

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