By Tom Crawford
tcrawford@abcnews4.com
CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCIV) -- For people who
dislike cold weather of any sort, it's tough to beat temperatures in the mid
70s in December. And it appears a large part of the U.S. could be in for a
warmer-than-average winter.
According to
NOAA forecasters, an El Nino that should have developed by now is still
wavering, which has made the winter outlook less certain than in previous
years.
"This is one
of the most challenging outlooks we've produced in recent years because El Niño
decided not to show up as expected," said Mike Halpert, deputy director of
NOAA's Climate Prediction Center.
"In fact, it stalled out last month, leaving neutral conditions in place in the
tropical Pacific."
Because there
is still a window for an El Nino to emerge, a watch remains in effect.
According to
the NOAA, areas that battled droughts during the year are not likely to see
conditions improve during the winter.
While most of
the western U.S. will
experience warmer-than-average temperatures, people living in the Hawaiian Islands
and in areas of Florida
outside the panhandle will see cooler-than-average temperatures.
Hawaii, along with the Pacific Northwest and northern California, as well as parts of Wyoming,
Utah and Nevada will see drier-than-average conditions.
The eastern
part of the country falls into an "equal chance" category, according to the
NOAA, meaning conditions are equal for above-, below- or near-normal
temperatures and precipitation.
Winter
officially begins on Friday, Dec. 21 at 6:12 a.m. This is what's known as
the Winter Solstice. Solstice is actually a Latin term that means "the
sun" and "to stand still." This is also the day the sun has
reached it's southernmost position, the Tropic of Capricorn or 23.5 degrees
south of the Equator.
The Winter Solstice is the shortest day of the
year. After this date, the days start getting longer. But as the great
comedian Steve Martin would say, "A day without sunshine is like, you
know, night."
As we move past Dec. 21 and over the next
couple of months, temperatures will remain cool because the sun will be well to
the south of the equator.
Spring stats March 20, 2013, at 7:02
a.m., which is the Vernal Equinox. That is when the sun is right over the
equator. The tilt of the earth relative to the sun is zero, meaning there is
equal daylight and darkness.
