Just under 2 inches of new snow fell the entire month, making it one of the least snowy on record. Last season was the second snowiest on record. The winter of 2011-12 set the record for the city’s snowiest. A few winters later, Kutz said, “we dropped down to minimum snow.”

The temperature at one location in Anchorage rose from 16°F on December 7, to 43°F on December 8, highlighting the large temperature differences in short distances that are common during the winter months in much of Alaska due to the lack of heating from the sun and snow cover.

Authorities in New Delhi shut schools, halted construction and banned nonessential trucks from entering the city after air pollution shot up to its worst level this season.