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And, according to local meteorologists, these unusual summer chills are forecast to continue for the next few weeks, at least.
Residents of Mývatnssveit and Fáskrúðsfjörður, located in Northeast Iceland and East Fjords, respectively, are waking to snow-covered landscapes this week.
Óli Þór Árnason, meteorologist at the Icelandic Met Office, said that numerous areas from Eyjafjörður Fjord in the north and all the way to the East Fjords have received either sleet or snow in recent days.
“It has gotten colder in the East Fjords lately, where the temperature is close to 0C (32F),” Árnason noted.
“It gradually gets warmer the farther south you go,” he continued, “but not much — the mercury is reaching just 3C (37F) in Djúpivogur and 5C (41F) in Hornafjörður fjord (in the southeast).”
Meteorologist Einar Sveinbjörnsson added: “What makes this Arctic depression so special is how southern it is.”
The mid-June snow was so heavy in places that tourists had to be rescued after finding themselves trapped.
As reported by Iceland Review, search and rescue crews were called out to assist a group of visitors at a campsite near Vík í Mýrdal, located at the southern tip of the country, after a severe snowstorm blew in.
More than 10cm (4 inches) of global warming goodness had settled on the Pakgil campsite in just a few hours, making it impossible for ordinary vehicles to negotiate the steep and rough track, reports the independent.co.uk.
Sveinbjörnsson continued, writing on his daily weather blog: “One has been able to observe the formation of a more severe type of Arctic depression, but what also makes it special is its location, i.e. how southern it is.
“The origin can be traced to the inflow of freezing Arctic air from Canada east to the Atlantic Ocean.”
Normally, June is the month with least precipitation in Iceland, and snow is rare, added Sveinbjörnsson. " ...