While we try to hang on to the last remnants of the summer heat before fall, I have some bad news for you. Even though winter is still roughly four months away, the Farmer’s Almanac is already predicting that it’ll be cold, throwing around unnerving words like, “frigid” and “freezing.”
Farmers’ Almanac Editor and Philom Peter Geiger said in a press release on Aug. 26, “Our extended forecast is calling for yet another freezing, frigid, and frosty winter for two-thirds of the country.”
Last year, the Farmer’s Almanac had a prediction for the United States that turned out to be correct, since a good portion of the country saw a long and snowy winter.
According to forecasters the 2019-2020 season is expected to be “another wild ride” with plenty of heavy snow across most of the country, and has been described as a “polar coaster.”
The Almanac’s website states, “The biggest drop—with the most freefalling, frigid temperatures—is forecasted to take hold from the northern Plains into the Great Lakes. The Northeast, including the densely populated corridor running from Washington to Boston, will experience colder-than-normal temperatures for much of the upcoming winter. Only the western third of the country will see near-normal winter temperatures, which means fewer shivers for them.”
Just like last year’s winter, the upcoming winter season’s coldest spurt is expected to arrive during the last week of January and beginning of February, as predicted by the Almanac.
Back in late January and early February of 2019, a so-called “polar vortex” hammered a majority of the US as it brought Arctic temperatures. There were some areas around the Midwest and Great Lakes which had wind chills of minus 40 to 65 degrees below zero!
If you’re wondering if we’re in for another “polar vortex” this coming winter season, just know that the Almanac hasn’t mentioned one.
However, with regards to snowfall, the Almanac has predicted an expected “above-normal winter precipitation over the eastern third of the country as well as the Great Plains, Midwest, and the Great Lakes.” Meanwhile, there is a forecast for almost-normal precipitation in the Pacific Northwest and Southwest regions.
“With colder-than-normal temperatures in the Northeast and above-normal precipitation expected, our outlook forewarns of not only a good amount of snow, but also a wintry mix of rain, sleet—especially along the coast,” the forecasters have said.
The Almanac added that the eastern half of the US will experience heavy precipitation and strong winds at the beginning of January.
“For those who live northeast of the Texas Panhandle to the western Great Lakes, watch out for what could prove to be a memorable storm producing hefty snows for the Great Plains during the third week of January. This system will cause temperatures to plummet and drag the coldest Arctic air across the rest of the country into the beginning of February,” the forecasts said.
Meanwhile, spring 2020 is predicted to be a slow start for all the Northeast, Midwest, New England, and Great Lakes regions.
The press release for the Almanac stated, “Occasional wet snow and unseasonably chilly conditions will hang on for a ride that you may not be able to get off until April.”
What do you think about the predictions for the upcoming winter? Are you happy for more heavy snowfall or are you saving all your vacation time for the dead of winter so you can go somewhere warmer? Let us know.