Moscow is experiencing significant disruption as Cyclone Viviana brings heavy snowfall, strong winds, and temperatures well below seasonal averages, causing major traffic congestion across the capital.
The storm, which arrived on Tuesday, February 17, 2026, is delivering snowfall exceeding half of Moscow’s typical monthly precipitation, according to Roscosmos, the Russian state corporation for space activities. Satellite imagery released by Roscosmos depicts the cyclone covering Moscow and much of European Russia.
Reports indicate that the snowfall is the heaviest Moscow has seen in 70 years. Yevgeny Tishkovets, a leading specialist at the Phobos weather Center, stated that the region is facing an “incredibly snowy winter.” He further noted that up to 33 mm of precipitation is expected in Moscow, surpassing the January 9th record of 12.9 mm set in 1976.
The Hydrometeorological Center of Russia forecasts that the snowfall will continue through the weekend and may resume on February 16th. The anticipated accumulation of snow is expected to increase snow cover from 25 to 40-45 cm, with drifts potentially reaching half a meter in areas surrounding Moscow.
On February 13th, Yandex Weather predicted a brief period of positive temperatures on Saturday, February 14th, before a significant drop in temperatures. The forecast for Saturday included cloudy conditions with possible snow and rain, while Sunday is expected to be considerably colder.
The approaching cyclone, initially named Francis, originated in the Balkans and traveled nearly 2,000 kilometers to reach Central Russia. It brought up to 6 buckets of rainwater per square meter to Northern Macedonia in the preceding 24 hours, according to Tishkovets.
