IGLOO EFFECT SAVES SWEDISH MAN TRAPPED FOR TWO MONTHS IN A SNOWED IN CAR

Sweden, being a Nordic nation, endures long, cold, and gloomy winters each year. This is also true for the city of Umeå in northeastern Sweden, where the average January minimum temperature is a chilly -10.7°F. Therefore, it's amazing that a 44-year-old man survived two months stuck in a snow-covered car under such circumstances. 

Peter Skyllberg was stranded in his vehicle outside of Umeå on December 19, 2011, just a few kilometres from the biggest highway in the nation. Skyllberg was unable to escape due to the heavy snow that covered the car, and the outside temperature dropped to about -30°C (-22°F).

A meter of snow covered a narrow forest path as two men on snowmobiles crossed it on February 17, 2012. They chose to approach the car that stood at the very end of the path, which they assumed was abandoned and scrapped. They were looking inside the car when they noticed a sudden movement.

Sixty days after going missing, Skyllberg was finally rescued. He was emaciated, confused, and hardly able to move or speak when the two men found him huddled inside a sleeping bag. The only items in the car, besides Skyllberg, were a bottle of soda, comic books, and cigarettes.

According to Swedish tabloid Aftonbladet, Ebbe Nyberg, a local police officer who responded to the scene, "he said that he hadn't eaten any food since December 19 other than a little snow." "He was struggling greatly, but he could talk a little bit."

How could Skyllberg have survived under these unusual conditions? The chief medical officer at Norrland University Hospital, Dr Ulf Segerberg, thought it was because the snow pressed up against his car naturally warmed it up, acting as an igloo would.

Segerberg told The Guardian, "Igloos typically have temperatures a few degrees below 0°C (32°F), and if you have good clothes you would survive in those temperatures and be able to preserve your body temperature."

Stefan Branth, another physician, speculated that Skyllberg's body going into a state of "hibernation" was another reason he survived.

"Much like a hibernating bear. People are capable of doing that. His body most likely acclimated to a temperature of about 31°C (87.8°F). Not much energy was expended because of the low temperature, Branth said.

Fortunately, Skyllberg only required care in a regular hospital ward and recovered in due time. But even in a nation used to a lot of snow and freezing temperatures, his case is still unique.

"There have been cases of people getting trapped in the mountains, and they can survive and be found if they can dig themselves down in the snow," Segerberg said. "But in this instance, there must be something unique."