Snow Bombs Predicted This Winter for New York State
The weather has been a mixed bag for the country this summer with both unbearable heat and humidity hitting some states, and cooler than average temperatures hitting other states.
That's been the case for New York state in August, as it's been a rather cool August compared to past years. We have had 80-degree days, but quite a few low-to-mid 70 degree days as well.
We're one month away from the official start of fall and four months away from the official start of winter.
If you have lived in New York long enough, then you know that snow does not wait for the official start of winter (December 21st) to bring snowstorms to the state. In fact, lake effect snowstorms are more common in November and December than January and February, when the Great Lakes are warmer and not frozen yet.
The winter of 2023-2024 might be particularly awful for the east coast and that includes New York state.
The reason is because of El Nino, according to multiple weather forecasters, including Chris Justus, who is forecasting a strong El Nino this winter.
The water temperatures of the Atlantic Ocean will be warmer than normal as well, which means that the ramped up jet stream will meet up with the warmer Atlantic Ocean and cause storms. There will also be times massive cold fronts come down from Canada. If these factors meet up, that means major snowstorms could happen (lake effect storms, blizzards, Nor'Easters).
Justus also says this could mean what they call "snow bombs," which is another name for a bomb cyclone.
Bomb cyclones are when 24 millibars of pressure drops within a 24-hour period. If the air is cold enough, that causes heavy snow, high winds and dangerous travel conditions.
Last year, Western and Central New York were decimated by both lake effect snowstorms and Winter Storm Elliott, which caused blizzard conditions the week of Christmas, which resulted in fatalities.
Hopefully, these gloomy predictions do not come true but it at least helps to be prepared for what could be a very bad winter for those of us in New York.