OCTOBER 20, 2020 — The NOAA Climate Prediction Center has issued their Winter Outlook, along with the Farmers' and Old Farmers' Almanac predictions. All three of these best guesses agree on one thing: better chances for above-normal precipitation. The Old Farmers' Almanac believes the Great Lakes Winter will be "More Wet than White," which contradicts the Farmers' Almanac belief that a "Cold and Very Flaky" winter is on the way for us.
The Climate Prediction Center is the only one out of these three with an actual scientific thought. This year's CPC Winter Outlook is based around weak La Niña conditions. La Niña is the phenomenon of cooler sea temperatures in the Pacific near the equator. Historically, La Niña has given us colder than normal and snowy winters.
This year's mild La Niña will probably only last for the beginning of winter. This leads me to believe we have a better chance of kicking winter off with couple decent snowstorms before the end of the year, followed by a warmer and less snowy second half of winter.
We shall see. Anyone who tells you they know exactly how winter will play out is lying to you.