December outlook

Welcome to December and on average (for some parts of the state) our snowiest month of the year. Most of Kansas averages 3-6 inches of snow, but what are the chances we will see that this month.

Lets look at the setup for the next 10-12 days:
Upper level winds will be coming straight out of the north, so much chillier weather is going to spread over the central and eastern parts of the US. Kansas will be in and out of cold snaps, but it should NOT be a continuous two week period of bitter cold. Unfortunately, this kind of setup is also extremely dry. So I don't see us getting any rain or snow in the first half of December.

Mid-December:
More cold air could be pushing south from Canada, diving down through Kansas and surrounding areas. But once again, this kind of setup is not a precipitation maker for the Plains. So dry weather will likely continue through the middle of the month.

Week before Christmas:
Some signs point toward a warming trend for the central US in the week before Christmas. Unfortunately, this is not looking like a year for a white Christmas. Bitter cold continues for the east coast, but for the Plains, we may be warming up for a short period.

After Christmas:
Our best chances for moisture may come toward the end of the month. If the longer range models have a clue (and sometimes they don't), there's a possibility some active weather may push in from the west. So we will keep an eye on the last 10 days of December for hopefully a chance at some moisture.