2018-2019 Winter Outlook

Tropical System in the Gulf; Dangerous Heat and Air Quality Concerns; Severe Thunderstorms for Midwest to mid-Atlantic

Tropical system in the Gulf expected to gradually strengthen the next couple of days off the Florida Panhandle and Alabama coasts. Instances of flash flooding will be possible through Thursday along the eastern and central Gulf Coast. Severe thunderstorms will develop and move along a cold front crossing the Upper Midwest, and through the Ohio Valley/Mid-Atlantic on Tuesday. Read More >

Bottom Line for the Local Area...

NOAA's Climate Prediction Center (CPC) forecast for the upcoming winter months of December-February:

Temperatures: Warmer-than-normal is slightly favored. This is due to a developing weak El Niño.

Precipitation: Drier than normal very slightly favored over the Great Lakes. It should be noted, however, while there is a tendency toward dry during weak El Niños, there has also been a wet trend over the past 15 winters in the Upper Mississippi River Valley.

The temperature and precipitation outlook images are below:

Winter Temperature Outlook

Winter Precipitation Outlook

Here is a link to the Official Winter Outlook from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Climate Prediction Center: