Sunday, December 29, 2024

January outlook - Arctic air returns

I've heard several people talk about the lack of cold in December and how it never really felt like Christmas. We've yet to have Arctic air and most are still waiting on the first measurable snow. The lack of snow isn't anything new for December. After all, some years we are waiting until February or March. 

The month of December winds up much warmer than average from the central Plains westward:

January thoughts:

It continues to look like the cold will start cutting loose and moving south. The question is will Kansas be on the western fringe of the Arctic air or in the middle of it? The first week shows signs of being somewhat "near" normal with highs a mix of 30s and 40s. 


I do think heading toward mid-January, odds are better for our first batch of Arctic air to move south into the Plains. This may hit around the 10th of January and go deep into the South, with most areas east of the Rockies experiencing the coldest air.


The entire month isn't cold though, as late January may have some potential warming once again. That's what you see below.


As far as precipitation goes, January doesn't look like it will be a wet month, but much of the state should get some of its first snows of winter. I'd anticipate near or below average moisture through February 1st. 

January average look like this:


Remember one of the first snow storms in 2024? This system dumped heavy snow on a good portion of Kansas and combined with strong north winds to create blizzard conditions. It shut down many roads especially across western Kansas. Some of the highest totals came out of central Kansas. 



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