Skip to main content
Winter 2012-13 Outlook for North Carolina

folklore

Nov 14, 2017

Winter Folklore Hints at When Snow Might Arrive

Whether you’re an ardent believer in their forecasts or just an interested outside observer, the colorful collection of weather folklore provides plenty to talk about as we head into the winter. Before we release our office’s winter outlook on Thursday, let’s take a look at how some of this famous folklore suggests our winter might…

Mar 21, 2017

Winter Recap 2016-17: Warm, Dry Weather Dominates

As we pass the midway point of March, if you’re left wondering “where was winter?!”, you’re not alone. A heavy dose of mild weather since mid-January made for a largely uneventful season, especially in terms of wintry precipitation. However, such conditions were not entirely unexpected. In our Winter Outlook post released last November, we noted…

Nov 10, 2016

Folklore-Based Forecasts Offer Little Consensus for this Winter

Our 2016-17 Winter Outlook series includes three posts beginning today and concluding on November 17 with our office’s predictions for the winter. The signs of the changing seasons are all around us, from falling leaves to first fall frosts. Before the days of scientific seasonal forecasts, these observations from nature were the main source of…

Mar 29, 2016

Winter Recap 2015-16: El Niño Fuels Wet Weather, Little Snow

With spring springing and blooms blooming, the winter has wrapped up in North Carolina. While we can’t rule out additional frost or freeze events this spring, we can close the book on the winter, and it tells the story of a season dominated by the effects of a strong El Niño. Our recap of the…

Nov 10, 2015

Woolly Worms, Almanacs, and August Weather Predict the Winter

Our 2015-16 Winter Outlook series begins today and concludes on November 23rd. In these five posts, we will discuss predictions and patterns that may shape North Carolina’s winter weather. Folklore is a popular source for predictions about the weather, and North Carolina has a rich collection of winter weather folklore, ranging from insects to almanacs…

Mar 24, 2015

Winter Recap 2014-15: A Warm Start with a Frigid, Frozen Finish

Today we revisit North Carolina’s winter, including a seasonal summary, a review of predictions from folklore and our own winter outlook, and an ENSO update and outlook. Winter Summary The meteorological winter — December through February — finished as the 40th-coolest and 33rd-driest winter statewide out of 120 years of record. But the whole winter…

Nov 17, 2014

Famous Folklore Suggests a Cool Winter Awaits

Today we begin our four-part winter outlook series with the forecasts from some well-known bits of folklore. From bugs to plants to sun spots, many natural phenomena have become the basis for winter weather forecasts. While our own scientific knowledge of the atmosphere tends to give us a more confident forecast for the coming seasons,…

Apr 5, 2013

Winter 2012-13 Recap

Back in December, we released our winter outlook that included our own winter forecast and the predictions of the woolly worm, farmers’ almanacs, and two important global climate patterns. A little over three months later, the winter has now wrapped up, giving us a chance to review the winter and these predictions. ENSO’s Impacts (or…

Dec 17, 2012

Winter 2012-13 Outlook for North Carolina

Over the past two weeks, we have covered four different winter forecasting techniques, ranging from fun traditions (the woolly worm and farmers’ almanacs) to more robust science (predicting the NAO/AO and ENSO patterns). So what are these methods telling us about the 2012-13 winter? The Woolly Worm This year’s woolly worm predictions were made during…