The Old Farmer’s Almanac predicted a “A Tale of Two Winters,” dividing the country in half. “Depending on where you live, this will be the best of winters or memorable for all the wrong reasons,” reports Janice Stillman, editor of The Old Farmer’s Almanac. “One half of the country will deal with bone-chilling cold and loads of snow, while the other half may feel like winter never really arrives.”
Which one do we fall in you may be asking? Well, let’s just say you might want to put on your warmest earmuffs to avoid hearing this forecast. A “Shivery & Snowy” winter with “record-breaking cold” temperatures across the East Coast is what the The Old Farmer’s Almanac predicted. They said a great amount of snowfall was expected in areas of New England, to North Carolina, with frigid temperatures reaching portions of Texas and the Deep South.
Apparently, the 230-year-old periodical has boasted an 80 percent accuracy rate for weather forecasts.
Still, the government arm NOAA — whose Climate Prediction Center is part of the National Weather Service — offered quite a contrast in predictions with temperatures being warmer than average for the Southwest and Northeast regions.
As you can see, NYC falls into the 40-50 percent range for above normal temperatures.
As for precipitation, the chart shows less clear predictions for NYC, with the area being in the “equal chance” range for below or above normal rates. Whereas parts of the Northwest and Midwest can more clearly expect a wetter winter and Southwest and Southeast a dryer winter.
Yet, AccuWeather forecasts New York to receive 18-23 inches of snow during the season, which is below the average 29.8 inches.
Only time will tell which prediction will come out on top, but until then, we’re trying to enjoy as much of the nice fall weather we can!