NOAA’S PRECIPITATION OUTLOOK FOR

DECEMBER:

NOAA’s official December Outlook has been released. As resort openings are slowly gathering steam, snow enthusiasts are all hoping that their home mountain is a projected winner in the snow race. 

Precipitation projections for December: The northern Rockies, the Great Lakes area and western Alaska are all expected to have wetter than normal conditions. For all other regions in ski country, the conditions less predicable. The map above shows Montana the big winner in terms of precipitation along with most of Wyoming and eastern Idaho.

NOAA’S TEMPERATURE OUTLOOK FOR

DECEMBER:

NOAA’s temperature predictions show above average conditions for much of the west coast, the central Rockies, western and northern Alaska and northern New England. The rest of the states fall into the “equal chance” category meaning there is not enough information to tip the balance either toward a warmer or colder than usual prediction.

This seasonal outlook does not project where and when snowstorms may hit or provide total seasonal snowfall accumulations. Snow forecasts are dependent upon the strength and track of winter storms, which are generally not predictable more than a week in advance. However, La Nina winters tend to favor above average snowfall around the Great Lakes and in the northern Rockies and below average snowfall in the mid-Atlantic.

NOAA