This map of the land surface temperature shows that the first week of December was exceptionally cold in northern Europe and the eastern United States.
A potent weather system with origins in Manitoba moved south across the Great Lakes on Halloween and blew all the way to Florida, bringing snow and hard frost to regions that don't see either in some winters.
Acquired January 7, 2010, this image shows snow blanketing England, from the east to west coast. The cities of Manchester, Birmingham, and London appear as ghostly gray shapes on the icy surface.
Winter turned fierce in the opening weeks of 2009, and part of the reason for the cold snaps and winter storms came from big changes in the atmosphere about 20 kilometers above the Earth.