Christmas Day Weather Through the Years

Christmas Day Weather at Bangor and Caribou over the years

Since weather records began in Bangor in 1925 the weather conditions have varied widely on Christmas day at Bangor. The warmest Christmas was in 2003 with a high of 51F. The lowest temperature ever observed on Christmas was 17 below in 1980. The lowest high temperature ever observed was 6 above in 1975. The normal high and low on Christmas Day is 31F and 11F.

What are the chances of a white Christmas? For the purposes of this write-up we will define a white Christmas as having at least 1 inch of snow on the ground on Christmas Morning. Over the years a white Christmas has been observed 75 percent of the time. The average snow depth is 4 inches, and 1970 takes the top honors with 23 inches of snow on the ground. The snowiest Christmas was in 1938 when 9.2 inches of snow was observed.

At Caribou, where weather records began in 1939, the warmest Christmas was in 1964 and also 2003 with a high of 48F. The lowest temperature of 26 below was observed in 1975. The only time that the high temperature failed to reach zero was in 1983 when the high was only 1 below. The normal high and low on Christmas Day is 23F and 6F.

What are the chances of a white Christmas? There have only been 6 years (1957, 1973, 1998, 2001, 2006, and 2010) with less than an inch of snow on the ground. An inch or more of snow has been observed 92 percent of the time on Christmas morning. The average snow depth is 8 inches, and 1989 had the deepest snow pack with 29 inches of snow on the ground. The snowiest Christmas was in 1997 when 8.7 inches of snow was observed.

So, what is in store for this Christmas? It looks to be dry and cold with highs in the single digits at Caribou and 10 to 15 above at Bangor. Temperatures Christmas morning are expected to start off below zero across northern and eastern Maine. A white Christmas is a certainty this year with 8 inches of snow on the ground as of Sunday evening at Bangor and 13 inches at Caribou.

                                                                     Image courtesy of the National Climatic Data Center