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No, it isn't the usual culprit of Nunavut, or anywhere else in our country's large swath of the Arctic, but rather Alberta.

Summer snow rude awakening for these Canadians. See photos


Daniel Martins
Digital Reporter

Tuesday, August 23, 2016, 7:34 AM - As summer churns to an end with late August appearing on the horizon, it has started snowing in Canada.

No, it isn't the usual culprit of Nunavut, or anywhere else in our country's large swath of the Arctic, but rather Alberta, whose highest places are seeing some noticeable snow on the radar.

Flashes of blue on the archived radar map (shown below) are a rare and never too welcome sight in what's supposed to be a month known for heat and humidity.

The Weather Network meteorologist Matt Grinter says the snow is caused by the interaction of cold air with a system that brought more than 70 mm of rain to parts of Alberta.

Cold air aloft is brought into the region by an upper level low. Combine that with upsloping moisture from a low that has brought some northeasterly winds, and you have enough moisture hitting air that's just cold enough to result in snow, depending on how high up you are.

On Twitter, you can clearly see the snow from the webcam at Lake Louise. 


MORE IMAGES: Check out more photos of summer snow in Alberta by viewing our Twitter Moment


Take our poll question below: If you woke up to snow tomorrow, how would you feel?


Snow arrives same time as last year

Grinter also notes snow in Alberta in August is not impossible, and in fact, the upper elevation snows of Monday come exactly one day after Alberta saw its first snowfall last year, particularly for areas in and around Calgary.

Meanwhile, Calgary saw over 28 cm of snow in early September of 2014 that caused widespread damage. Over 30,000 homes were left without power, forcing officials to open up an their emergency operations centre.

Calgary is expected to be somewhat chilly this week, though temperatures will rise to the 20oC mark, or not to far below it, by late week.

Tune in to The Weather Network on TV for ongoing updates.

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