Enjoy Summer Because Early Forecasts Warn Of A Brutal NY Winter

NEW YORK, NY — Summer's just started, the temperature's been nudging toward 100 degrees – what better time to prepare for winter? And prepare you should, as early predictions are promising that this year's will be brutal.

The Washington Post's Capital Weather Gang says signs of an above-average winter in terms of snowfall for the east coast are already being seen, pointing to three factors in particular.

Specifically, they noted the fact that the National Weather Service has declared an El Nino watch, calling for a weak to moderate event this winter. El Nino boosts odds of snow, and we have had snowier than average winters about two-thirds of the time when there is an El Nino event going on, the report notes.

Then there's the fact that the Pacific Ocean is warming, which causes the jet stream to flow into the eastern United States, sending that cold air that needed for snow to form.

Additionally, the sun is entering into a quiet solar period, and that can have an impact on the weather as well.

"[Q]uiet solar periods with reduced sunspot activity are connected to zones of high pressure in the high latitudes, which favor colder than normal air in the eastern United States and Western Europe," CWG writes.

So those are three very big factors that point in favor of a snowy winter. That doesn't mean it's a sure thing yet, but it's definitely something you should keep an eye on as the year progresses.

"Moving forward, days shorten and, in about a month, average temperatures start to fall," The Capital Weather Gang writes. "Although making projections about the winter are difficult even in the fall, there are important indicators developing in the summer that point to possible snow excitement in the winter."

Story by Patch Editor Dan Taylor

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