COLUMBUS, Ohio ( WCMH ) — NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center is forecasting a continuation of above-normal temperatures through the beginning of winter (November-January) across much of the country.
The forecast for precipitation leans toward wetter-than-normal conditions in the Pacific Northwest and Great Lakes, with “equal chances” or near-normal precipitation in the Ohio Valley. Drier conditions are expected across the Southern states.
The expectation for generally warmer-than-normal weather is linked to a developing Pacific climate pattern. The Climate Prediction Center is giving a 60% chance of La Niña emerging this month and lingering through March 2025.
La Niña reflects a cyclical cooling of the eastern and central tropical Pacific, the opposite of El Niño, a warm water anomaly that prevailed during the winter of 2023-24.
Average first snowfall in central Ohio
The current mild autumn conditions will likely delay the appearance of winter in central Ohio.
Early November is when we often see the first flurries of the season, not counting the graupel (soft hail) that mixed with rain and hail showers on Oct. 15…