Long-term experts predict warm autumn for the USA
The transition to fall will be slow in most parts of the country this year, and warm temperatures are expected to last well into fall.
This summer has hit Delaware.
With a heat wave in June, heat warnings in July, and another heat warning in August, as well as the remnants of Tropical Storm Debby, it’s been a rough summer.
It somehow makes you want winter.
Fall forecast for Delaware: What Delaware can expect from the weather this fall, according to the Old Farmer’s Almanac
When does winter start?
That depends. There is a meteorological winter and an astronomical winter, and they both start on different days.
Meteorological winter: Meteorological seasons are groupings of three months based on annual temperature cycles. Winter begins on December 1 and ends on February 28 or 29, depending on leap years.
Astronomical winter: The astronomical seasons are determined by the Earth’s natural rotation around the Sun. The Earth’s rotation determines the two solstices and equinoxes. The winter solstice is on or about December 22nd. Winter lasts until the spring equinox on March 21st.
What is the average winter temperature in Delaware?
Although winter in the First State is not as bad as in some other parts of the USA, it is still cold.
Last year, the statewide average temperature was 40.2 degrees, according to the Delaware Climate Office, 2.9 degrees above the 1991-2021 average of 37.3 degrees.
Delaware also recorded 15.83 inches of precipitation — 5.78 inches above the 1991-2020 average of 10.5 inches. Last winter was also the third wettest winter in the last 130 years. The First State also ended its snow drought with four snowfalls — the largest of which was 6 inches on Jan. 19.
What is the winter temperature outlook for Delaware?
The National Weather Service’s Climate Prediction Center predicts that temperatures in Delaware will be 40 to 50 percent above normal during the meteorological winter. The same is true for Maryland, Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
While last winter in Delaware was wet and the snow drought was over, whether this winter will be above or below normal in terms of precipitation is a matter of luck. The National Weather Service says both possibilities are equally likely.
