If you’re dreaming of a white Christmas this year, you’ll have to be ready to pack up the car and travel a few hundred miles.
You may have noticed that over the past week our temperatures have been trending well above average with days in the 80s, and we’re not alone.
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Climate Prediction Center places the majority of the southern and eastern United States trending above average through the rest of the year.
Winter has been the fastest warming season for most of the U.S. since 1970, increasing the likelihood of winter precipitation falling as rain rather than snow.
In a study released by Climate Central, looking at the time period starting in 1969 through 2020, Jacksonville has warmed roughly +1.5° for the 12 days of Christmas (December 25th - January 5th).
The report shows that 97% of recording weather stations have seen an increase in average temperature for this 12-day period since 1969. For 94% of the weather stations warming has exceeded 1°F.
Temperatures have climbed from coast to coast. According to Climate Central, the locations that have warmed the most are: Reno, Nevada (9.5°F); Burlington, Vermont (9.1°F), Milwaukee, Wisconsin (8.6°F), Helena, Montana (8.5°F), and Waterloo, Iowa (8.4°F).
You’re best chance to see snow this year will be in Idaho, Minnesota, Maine, Upstate New York, and the Allegheny, Rocky, or Sierra Nevada Mountains.
If you’re wanting to look at a specific location you’ll be visiting for Christmas you can check out your probability for snow with this interactive map from NOAA.