There are a number of factors of importance that contribute to the shape of Russia weather. With the notable exception of the tundra and the extreme southeast, most of European and Asia Russia experience a prevailing continental climate largely due to the country’s enormous size and the remoteness of many areas from the sea. However the country is also open to Arctic and Atlantic influences as its mountain ranges in the south behave as shields that block the flow of warm air masses from the Indian Ocean and the plain of the west and north.

Because of the moderating influence of the Atlantic or Pacific a more humid continental climate can be experienced in the most populous areas of the country in European Russia, in the south of West Siberia and in the south of the Russian Far East, including the cities of Moscow and Saint Petersburg. However the rest of country experiences a multitude of climatic conditions, ranging from the sub-arctic to humid subtropical. Winters are extremely severe and the climate is classified as sub-arctic in most of Northern European Russia and Siberia between the Scandinavian Peninsula and the Pacific Ocean. The inner regions of Northeast Siberia are under the influence of almost identical weather patters that are more pronounced in the Sakha Republic, where the Northern Pole of Cold is located.

Weather follows polar patterns on the strip of land along the shore of the Arctic Ocean, as well as the Arctic islands. In some of the islands though, conditions become more severe as the climate veers towards extreme polar and tundra on others.
A small portion of the Black experiences a humid subtropical climate, its features more pronounced in Sochi.

While most parts of the country experience precipitation in the form of snow, in many regions of East Siberia and the Far East experience summers are considerably wetter in comparison to winters in the same area. Other parts of Russia experience an evemly distributed precipitation throughout the year.

About 65% of Russian’s terrain is permanently frozen, and a semi-arid climate can be found in the region along the Lower Volga and Caspian Sea coast, as well as some areas of southernmost Siberia.