Experts predict a continued trend towards milder winters due to the La Niña effects

Given warmer winter conditions in the past, this appears to be a continuing trend in the coming winter. Every three to five years, a particular weather phenomenon occurs that can affect the weather in different parts of the world, including here in the United States

This phenomenon, either El Niño or La Niña, occurs year-round in the equatorial Pacific, but can occur primarily in the winter months. El Niño causes warmer water toward the Americas, which can lead to wetter winters in the southern United States and drier and above-average temperatures in the north.

According to the Climate Prediction Center, there is a 60% chance of a La Niña occurring in November. La Niña causes the opposite of El Niño, meaning cooler water would flow toward the Americas, which would then lead to warmer and drier conditions in the southern United States but wetter conditions in the north.

The jet stream, which is essentially a current of air through which storms travel, shifts north during a La Niña. For this reason, dry conditions prevail in the south and wetter conditions in the north.

From 2020 to 2023, there were La Niña patterns that resulted in or caused drought problems across the continental United States. While drought was largely eliminated in the Northwest and Ohio Valley, drought conditions worsened in the Southwest and Mississippi Valley.

Especially here in the central region, the wave formation of the jet stream can lead to more frequent cold outbreaks. As for the drought situation here, widespread moderate to extreme drought continues across much of the Great Plains and parts of the Rocky Mountains, particularly further south.

Current forecasts indicate a weaker La Niña in the future, but there is no sign that conditions in the central region will change as in our past. Even though the average amount of snowfall in the region has decreased, a continued trend can be expected next winter.