WASHINGTON — A tougher-than-usual winter is in store for the Metropolitan Washington area, according to predictions from the Old Farmer’s Almanac.
“It’s going to be colder, wetter, and snowier than usual — so, almost like last year,” says Old Farmer’s Almanac senior associate editor Sarah Perreault.
Snowfall in 2014-15 is predicted to occur locally in every winter month between November and March.
“You’re going to want to take a vacation about March, but don’t head to Florida because Florida is going to be cold and wet,” Perreault says, only half-joking, while noting that it should still be warmer in the Sunshine State.
The Old Farmer’s Almanac has been making long-term weather predictions since 1792 and has a self-reported accuracy rate of about 80 percent.
Predictions are based on meteorology examining the atmosphere, climatology evaluating weather over the past 30 years and on solar science.
Perreault says solar activity, including magnetic storms, influences earth’s weather. The sun is now in a cycle of low activity. The late summer 2013 peak of activity during this current low activity period was the lowest peak recorded in 300 years.
“And that just points to colder weather, which is why the winters are so much colder than they usually are,” she says.
- Spring 2015: Warmer and a little drier than normal in the Atlantic corridor.
- Summer 2015: Hotter and drier than normal.
- Autumn 2015: Above normal temperatures are predicted for most of the eastern half of the U.S.
For people interested in a look ahead that’s not dependent upon prognostication, The Old Farmer’s Almanac details numbers of astronomical occurrences.
Two lunar eclipses will be visible in North America in 2015.
During the April 4 eclipse, the moon will set during the eclipse for observers in the eastern U.S.
The Sept. 27-28 eclipse will be fully visible here with totality on Sept. 27 beginning at 10:11 p.m.
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