Record Cold Wave Freezes Lakes in Rio de Janeiro’s Itatiaia National Park and Nova Friburgo

A cold front swept through the state of Rio de Janeiro, producing record low temperatures. In the Itatiaia National Park on the Rio de Janeiro–Minas Gerais border, the Nascente de Campo Belo weather station recorded a minimum of ‑11 °C, breaking the previous park record of ‑7.7 °C and causing a lake within the reserve to freeze completely – a rare sight for the state.

In Nova Friburgo, the Pico da Caledônia guardhouse saw temperatures drop to 2.9 °C with wind gusts up to 55 km/h, driving the wind chill to ‑2 °C and prompting the water at the guard post to freeze again. The region had already experienced several days of unusually cold weather. Forecasts indicate that a high‑pressure system will bring drier, sunnier conditions from Wednesday through Saturday, with daytime highs ranging from 14 °C to 34 °C across the state, while mornings remain cool.

These observations highlight the severity of the current cold wave affecting southeastern Brazil, marking one of the coldest periods of the winter season in the area.