NOAA is out with an updated Winter 2011/2012 outlook ...
So why not take a look, it can’t hurt right? And who knows ... maybe it will make us all feel better as the first day of “winter” approaches next Thursday.
The maps shown here by NOAA, show probabilities of well above or well below normal temperature and precipitation in the continental United States for December 2011-February 2012, according to the official forecast issued by the Climate Prediction Center in late November.
The Tri-States once again falls right in the middle with an "Equal chance" of above or below normal precip/temps. The good news is that the "Above normal temps" are very close to us.
More notable in this forecast to me are two things.
The first, and most notable to us here in the Tri-States, is the chance for “well above average” precipitation for the area north of us. Of course I am referring to the region which fuels the big muddy that cuts right through our region, if this forecast pans out it could have us on a Mississippi River watch this spring.
The second area that interests me just as much, although less affecting to the Tri-States, is the Missouri River basin, not to mention the others like the Chattanooga & Cumberland, all of which have seen several “wet” seasons of late.
Right or wrong, it still makes for interesting fodder and the prospect of a warmer than normal winter makes me feel better about my winter heating bill!
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