At Least We’re Not in Oymyakon, Coldest Inhabitable City on Earth

The snow! Still coming! Thus I welcome, via Hairpin pal Melissa Warnke, this stunning photo series from Oymyakon, Russia, where the average temperature in winter is -58 Fahrenheit, and wearing glasses outdoors will cause them to “stick to the wearer’s face”:

The frozen ground makes it difficult for working indoor plumbing, so most toilets are outhouses. The bitter cold also makes it difficult to dig graves. The ground has to be warmed with a bonfire before a funeral. Locals use heated garages for their cars. Cars left outside need to be kept running, otherwise they will not restart. Planes cannot fly into the area in the winter. And of course the risk of frostbite is great after only a few minutes in the cold.

Photographer Amos Chapple says that focusing his camera lens felt like “opening a pickle jar.” [Weather]