The Triad got its first dusting of snow before the official start of winter this year, but meteorologists say that’s not necessarily an indicator of a harsh season ahead.
Paul Pastelok with Accuweather says it’s likely that major winter storm systems miss the region this year.
“They don't produce a lot of precipitation for us here in North Carolina; a lot of times they just kind of skip to the east and try to get moisture off the Atlantic and usually pull it northward,” he says.
He’s predicting above-average temperatures and below-average snowfall, even in the High Country. But he says we could still see a cold snap or two.
“We're seeing also some evidence of the polar vortex being a little out of whack at the end of this month, which could bring a little bit of extra cold at the very end of 2024 to the start of 2025.”
Pastelok is also keeping an eye out for thunderstorms this winter — he says those systems have been arriving earlier and earlier every year.