It seems to me that there are only two questions on Twitter today: 1) "Can we do this again tomorrow?!" and 2) "Where is WINTER?!" So, I suppose I should take this opportunity to answer those two questions in this blog. Here we go…
Question: 1) "Can we do this again tomorrow?!" Answer: No. Not quite, anyway. For the month of December so far, we’re about 7° above average… and today’s highs (breaking 60° in many spots) will likely bump that stat up a bit more. Some people were tweeting pictures of themselves enjoying a beer in the backyard while wearing shorts (Yup, I saw that)! Some of us would love to don the short sleeves and sandals again tomorrow, but cooler temps are in store for Sunday. HOWEVER, we’ll still be above normal for this time of year. A backdoor cold front (coming in from the ENE) will bring in some cooler air. It’s a little tricky with the forecast highs for tomorrow – but points north of the front will be stuck in the 40s to near 50°, while points south of the front (New York City, for example) will be into the 60s again! Also, the clouds are moving in to our area tonight to stick around tomorrow. While that will keep temps in the low 40s overnight, it will also keep many spots from climbing OUT of the 40s tomorrow. *See picture below.
Question: 2) "Where is WINTER?" Well, if you want a geographical answer, Winter is in the Northwest right now. If you’re looking for a more philosophical answer to that question, you should ask Matthew McConaughey, who I imagine would say something like "Once you find winter, winter has found you." If you’re looking for an answer that’s in the 7-Day forecast, I’ll give you this: There are still NO snowflakes in the 7-Day. While temperatures are really all over the place throughout this week, ultimately we’ll still be mild through Friday. So, is winter around the corner? The answer is still "no," at least in reference to the weather. If you’re looking for winter on a calendar, you’ll find it on the 21st (Winter Solstice).
If you’re just wondering when you’ll really need to pull out the Canadian Goose jackets… Looks like we might have an opportunity next weekend, when temperatures will be closer to our climatological averages (Highs around 40, and lows in the upper 20s). For now, we’ll continue to "wait for it…"
