Temperatures throughout the world ranged from -65 degrees Fahrenheit in Alaska to 105 degrees in Sydney, Australia this week. Rain and high winds lashed Washington state as cold temperatures and snow blanketed Europe. (22 images)
The astronomy observatories atop the snow-capped mountain of Mauna Kea are seen Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2009 near Hilo, Hawaii. Mauna Kea is a dormant volcano and home to an astronomy community. A plume of smoke from the Halema'uma'u crater at Volcanoes National Park can be seen in the background. AP / Tim Wright
Two people walk on the snow covered Brocken mountain in eastern Germany on Jan. 6, 2009, where the temperatures fell far under zero degrees although the sun shines. Like much of Europe, Germany is being gripped by a bitter cold snap with temperatures plummeting overnight to as low as minus 26 Celsius (minus 14.8 Fahrenheit). AFP / Getty Images / Jens Schlueter
Skiers use a chair lift to mount the Fichtelberg peak in Oberwiesenthal, eastern Germany, on Jan. 6, 2009. Around 90 centimeters of snow on the 1,215-meter tall mountain offer good winter sports conditions. Like much of Europe, Germany is being gripped by a bitter cold snap with temperatures plummeting overnight to as low as minus 26 Celsius (minus 14.8 Fahrenheit) in the Saxonian town of Delitzsch, eastern Germany. AFP / Getty Images / Uwe Meinhold
A snow sculpture takes shape at the Snow Festival in Harbin, northeastern China's Heilongjiang province, Monday, Jan. 5, 2009. AP / Ng Han Guan
Snow falls on the Quai du Port street in Marseille's old harbor, southern France, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2009. Snow and freezing temperatures hit southern France Wednesday. AP / Claude Paris
A group of Gelada monkeys cuddle due to the cold at the Wilhelma zoo in Stuttgart on Jan. 7, 2009. The Gelada (Theropithecus gelada), sometimes called the Gelada Baboon, is a species found only in the Ethiopian Highlands. AFP / Getty Images / Michael Latz
Workers warm themselves around a bonfire at a firewood market in Amritsar, India, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2009. The northern belt in India continued in the grip of an intense cold wave and heavy fog, disrupting air, rail and road transportation. According to a local news agency six people have died due to cold. AP / Altaf Qadri
Jacques Sorentini, left, Gregory Hanifa, center, and Gregory Galaup, make a large snowman, on Jean Jaures square in Marseille, southern France, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2009. Snow and freezing temperatures hit southern France Wednesday. AP / Claude Paris
A man skis in the Notre-Dame-de-la-Garde basilica area, after 15 cms of snow fell, in Marseille, southern France, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2009. Subfreezing temperatures and exceptional snowfall caused problems across much of Europe on Wednesday, temporarily closing Milan's two airports, halting trains in the normally sunny south of France and pressing into service ice breakers in the Dutch port of Rotterdam. AP / Claude Paris
A woman skis past sheets of ice swimming on the water at the outskirts of Berlin on Jan. 7, 2009. Temperatures hovered around minus 5 degrees in the capital which remains blanketed in snow. AFP / Getty Images / Michael Gottschalk
A canopy of trees hangs heavy with snow on Friday, Jan. 2, 2009 in Spokane, Wash. Spokane finished December with 61.5 inches of snow, far eclipsing the previous one-month record of 56.9 inches set in January 1950. AP / The Spokesman-Review / Christopher Anderson
Neal Treece moves snow off his girlfriend's car so that he could move it before snow plows come through in Spokane, Wash. on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2009. Roof collapses continued in the Spokane area, as rain falling on a record snowpack created massive weight loads. School resumed in Spokane after a long winter break, and streets remained snarled Tuesday as melting snow was creating huge piles of slush.The Spokane area has been buried by 6.5 feet of snow since the middle of December. That included 7.5 inches that fell at Spokane International Airport on Monday, a record for the date. AP / Young Kwak
Melvin Francis knocks snow off an awning in front of Red Rock Insurance in downtown Gallup, N.M. on Monday, Jan. 5, 2009. Gallup and the surrounding area received nearly a foot of snow on Sunday and Monday morning. AP / Gallup Independent / Brian Leddy
Jennifer Jaques, right, reacts as Willie Caldwell's car gets close into sliding into another northbound on the Warren Avenue bridge in Bremerton, Wash. He would have made it clear except a car stopped in front of him and then he slid back. Jaques was on her way home from church when she stopped to help Sunday evening, Jan. 4, 2009. Bremerton picked up 5 inches of the wet snow. AP / Kitsap Sun / Larry Steagall
Jenesi Talbert of Tacoma, Wash., hides her face behind a warm scarf as she watches the Bremerton Strikers and the Franklin Pierce Sounders girls soccer game at a very cold Silverdale Stadium on Sunday. Jan. 4, 2009. Five inches of snow fell later in the evening. AP / Kitsap Sun, Larry Steagall
Cory Sturgis takes a break from shoveling snow off of his father's garage Friday, Jan. 2, 2008 in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. Clearing snow off of rooftops has become a lucrative business for those with the ability to take on the work during this heavy winter storm season. AP / Coeur d'Alene Press / Jerome A. Pollos
Residents evacuate from flooded houses as water rises in Cagayan de Oro City on Mindanao island on Jan. 3, 2009. About 5,000 families in the southern Philippines have been displaced by flash floods and large waves spawned by heavy rains, officials said. AFP / Getty Images / Gerry Gorit
A sliding glass door holds back nearly a foot of water as Toby Williamson tosses a plastic chair while attempting to get a sump pump working outside his father's home Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2009 in Deming, Wa. The family was able to pull up the carpet and remove all the funiture out of the basement before the water started seeping into the house. AP / The Bellingham Herald / Andy Brosnon
Lavon Wheatley is rescued from her home near Cougar, Wash. after Speelyai Creek flooded all escape routes, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2009. AP / The Columbian, Steven Lane
Rain drops collect on a a bus stop wall as Lori Dietrich waits for the bus on in Tacoma, Wash., on Tuesday Jan. 6, 2009. AP / The News Tribune / Janet Jensen
Locals and tourists visit Bondi Beach in Australia, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2009, on a hot Sydney day. While temperatures in Sydney's outer suburbs soar to a maximum of 41 degrees Celsius (105.8 Fahrenheit), those at the beaches enjoyed a milder 31 degrees Celsius (88 Fahrenheit). AP / Rob Griffith
A skier practices on the race trail in the subzero weather at Kincaid Park in Anchorage, Ala. Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2009 before the U.S. Cross Country Ski Championships were canceled due to the frigid weather. Alaska is experiencing the third longest cold snap in its history with temperatures in some parts of in the interior have dipping to -65. AP / Al Grillo
