NOAA Predicts Winter Rainfall May Relieve a few Drought Conditions

El Niño, which comes every two to five years, is caused by the warming of the Pacific Ocean around the equator. Warmer air also holds more moisture so that when we do see snow, it may be a heavier, wetter snow compared to the storms we saw last winter.

With so much talk about the upcoming El Niño, it should be no surprise that NOAA is forecasting a cold and wet winter for Oklahoma.

Those living in the north meanwhile might expect less than the 70 inches of average annual snowfall.

Exactly what particular cocktail of winter storms El Niño is mixing this year is still unclear – but if history is any guide, it will be a tough one. As expected, both reflect what you would expect during a strong El Niño year.

NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center has released its winter outlook for the US amid excitement over the drought-busting potential of one of the strongest El Niños on record. The forecast generally calls for cooler and wetter weather in the southern states and warmer and drier weather in the northern states.

However, Halpert says drought removal is more plausible in the Southwest and southern Plains.

“It might be slightly more likely to be wet and slightly more likely to be warmer”, Haynes said. There is potential for several large storms across the south with this pattern and if it is cold enough it would snow in the Ohio Valley.

Forecasters believe the North East could be set for a mild winter.

Even Northern California – home to the all-important Sierra Nevada and its water storing topography – should see average precipitation, which would be a welcome departure after four years of mostly bone-dry winters.

More than 97 percent of the state is under moderate to exceptional drought, according to the latest U.S. Drought Monitor. Things have settled into a sticky, uncomfortable humidity, but the Weather Bureau is adamant – El Nino is on its way and there will be lots of rain shortly.