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Farmer’s Almanac

Maybe there won’t be another freeze this winter

Nov 11th, 2021
by Charles Kuffner.
2 comments

Views differ.

Love it or hate it — winter looks especially warm in Texas this year.

Federal forecasters at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Climate Prediction Center said last week that much of the country is likely to see warmer than average conditions this winter, including Texas, thanks to La Niña.

It’s the second winter in a row that La Niña climate conditions — a natural cooling of sea water in the tropical Pacific Ocean — have emerged. The climate pattern affects the position of the jet stream and thus the weather across all of North America.

The outlook, which extends from December 2021 through February 2022, leans toward above normal temperatures for Texas.

Keith White, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service, told the Express-News that Texas should expect similar temperatures to last year before Winter Storm Uri brought plummeting temperatures and snowfall.

A Farmer’s Almanac forecast released in August predicted frigid temperatures and another winter storm.

“We’re still anticipating some cooler and wetter-than-normal weather,” White said. “But something like the storm we saw last year would be unlikely.”

See here for the opposing prediction. Sure, another freeze like last year is unlikely – we’ve only had a couple like it in the last 30 years. But climate change is real, and our grid remains rickety, so better safe than sorry. Be prepared, and hope for the best.

There will probably be another freeze this winter

Sep 26th, 2021
by Charles Kuffner.
3 comments

Hopefully not as bad, but, well, you know.

Savor the rest of the summer and all of fall because this winter in Texas is going to be “frigid and flaky” similar to February’s deadly storm, according to the Farmers’ Almanac.

The Almanac, which has been predicting the weather outlook for farmers and gardeners for over 200 years, says to expect a “frosty flip-flop winter” for the United States. For most of the country, there will be near-normal amounts of snow with some notable month-to-month variations, the Alamanc says.

In late January, Texas and Oklahoma may be in for icy weather “like you experienced last winter,” according to the Almanac’s report.

The Farmers’ Almanac previously predicted Texas’ winter storm Uri in which heavy snowfall, ice storms and bitter temperatures brought an enormous strain on the state’s power grid, leaving millions without electricity. Over 200 people died.

[…]

Before Texans start booking resort days in Cancun, the almanac is hoping the conditions will not be as bad as Uri.

“Hopefully, it won’t be as robust, but it doesn’t hurt to be prepared,” the Almanac said.

We can talk about Greg Abbott’s approval ratings right now all we want. If we have another freeze that’s anything like this past February, especially if people lose power like they did this year, forget it. After all his claims about how everything was fixed now, he better damn well hope so.