APPROVED FOR RELEASE: 2009/06/16: CIA-RDP01-00707R00200090020-4
Most of the ground is frozen and snow covered from late October to early May in the northern hills and mountains and from early December to early March in the southern plains. In the plains, snow accumulates to a maximum depth of several inches in the south and about 3 feet in the north in February and March. In the hills and mountains, snow generally accumulates to a maximum depth of about a foot in the south and at lower elevations and 6 feet or more in the northern mountains. In the extreme south and on the islands of Gotland and Oland, occasional thaws may melt all the snow. Throughout Sweden during the spring thaw the ground is wet and soft for a few weeks and then moist for the remainder of the period, however, bogs remain wet until frozen over.
Culture features have a dense pattern only in the southern plains of Sweden, culture features are moderately dense in the eastern part of the hills but are generally lacking in the mountains and higher hills. The southern plains contain most of the urban areas, most of the farms, and about 80% of the population of the country. Nearly one-fourth of the population lives in Stockholm, Goteborg, and Malmo. Urban areas commonly are along the coast or along rivers or lakes and generally have densely built-up central sections. Rectangular street patterns are common, and most streets are bituminous surfaced; some secondary and suburban streets have stone block, crushed stone, or gravel surfaces. Commercial, governmental, and institutional buildings and apartments are generally three to eight stories high and constructed of brick or concrete. Private residences are mostly one or two stories and built of wood; however, masonry is replacing wood as a construction material. Sheet metal, asbestos shingles, and tile are widely used for roofing. Farm buildings commonly consist of a one- to two-story wooden dwelling and several smaller wooden outbuildings. Fields are mostly small and irregularly shaped and generally are bordered by wire, wood, or stone fences. In the hills and mountains, significant culture features are numerous small towns and villages, scattered small farms, features associated with logging operations, and numerous dams and hydroelectric powerplants on the larger streams. Although one- or two-story wooden buildings are common on farms and in towns, most towns have numerous buildings of masonry construction. The typical street pattern in towns and settlements is rectangular; streets in the central sections of the larger towns are mostly bituminous surfaced. In the southern plains there is a dense network of roads and railroads; elsewhere, there is a sparse transportation network.
2. Climate
The climate of Sweden has marked seasonal variations, winter (December through February) is cold and cloudy and light snows are frequent, summer (June through August) is cool to warm and less cloudy with occasional showers and thunderstorms. The generally cold, cloudy climate of Sweden is influenced greatly by two contrasting airstreams; one, a moist airstream from the North Atlantic, is relatively warm in winter and cool in summer; the other, a dry airstream from the continental interior, is very cold in winter and moderately warm in summer. The interplay between these two airstreams and the resulting weather conditions takes place under the influence of the migratory low-pressure centers and their associated frontal systems that frequently pass through or near Sweden.
During winter, mean daily minimum temperature at elevations below 2,000 feet in the north range from about -5°(F.) to 15° (Figure 5), the higher elevations, how, are appreciably colder. In the south, mean daily minimums are mostly in the 20's. Absolute minimums throughout the country are well below zero, ranging from near -10° to -50°. During summer, mean daily maximum temperatures are generally between 50° and 65° in the north and between 65° and 70° in the south. Absolute maximums are mostly in the 80's and 90's, the lowest temperatures occur at the northernmost highland locations. Mean relative humidity is high in all parts of Sweden. Winter averages range mostly in the 80's and 90's (%) and late spring and summer percentages are in the 60's and 70's.
Precipitation is excessive nowhere in Sweden. Mean monthly averages range mostly from 2 to 4 inches in summer to 1 to 2 inches in winter. Showers and thunderstorms account for most of the summer precipitation, and light snows predominate in winter. The depth and persistence of the snow cover is greatest in the highlands of the north, where it is present in November through April, and maximum depths are 6 feet or more. In the south, snow cover is present much of the time from December through March, and maximum depths normally are below 1 foot. Thunderstorms are infrequent, occurring most often in summer. Thunderstorm days normally number 5 or less per month.
Cloudiness is greatest in winter, when monthly averages range between 60% and 80%. Late spring and early summer are least cloudy, and averages mostly are between 50% and 60%. In general, visibility is good; however, it is restricted to less than
4
APPROVED FOR RELEASE: 2009/06/16: CIA-RDP01-00707R00200090020-4
