New York City: Longest snowless, warmth stretch broken

It’s been 50 years since the last time New York City, especially Central Park, has gone so long without getting measurable snow. In fact, the snow will continue to be M.I.A for this week and perhaps even next! What’s happening?

Well, New York City has not received measurable snow since March 2022. Measurable snow is defined as an accumulation of at least a tenth of an inch. In fact, much of the Eastern Seaboard, although many gloomy days have gone by, has not really received the white snow, many places would have gotten on average by now.

This winter’s average temperatures have been warm. This was the second warmest January on record with an average temperature of 43.4F which is just 0.3 degrees below the warmest ever January in 1932.

There are many factors influencing this warmer-than-usual warmth. Although La Niña seems to be on life support, its impacts are still being felt across the States. Warmer than usual temperatures have been felt across the South and East, and this pattern will likely continue.

Of course, this doesn’t mean that snow won’t come this season at all, there is still plenty of time for the snow to make an appearance and even for it to snow a lot, but overall, once it is all said and done, we will look back at this winter and likely see that it was a warmer than average.

Winter is the fastest warming season across the eastern portion of the United States. On average, from the central Plains to the East Coast, winters have warmed at least 3F. We often talk about the summer’s intense heat and heat waves because that is what we feel more directly, but winters are the most impacted by the warming of our planet.

The coldest nights of the year have also gotten warmer. For example, in New York City, the coldest nights have warmed about 5 degrees since 1970.

When talking about getting (or not getting) snow, even one degree can make a big difference!