How to prepare your house for winter
James Hecker of Hudson Valley Household and Jesse Dorazio of Royal Comfort share tips for winterizing your home (August 19, 2024).
The United States is facing a wet and cold winter, partly due to La Niña, according to the Farmers’ Almanac’s extended winter forecast.
For centuries, the Farmers’ Almanac has predicted the weather for the United States. As the medium of communication has shifted from printed brochures delivered by horse, train, or foot to digital information via the Internet, the Farmers’ Almanac is still around in 2024.
This year, a “wet winter vortex” is predicted, peaking in late January/early February.
Here’s what the almanac had to say about the upcoming weather.
What does the Farmers’ Almanac say about winter in Columbus, Central Ohio?
Although Columbus is not featured prominently in its forecast, the almanac still includes some predictions for the region.
The Ohio Valley, Midwest and Great Lakes regions will see above-average precipitation this winter. The Ohio region in particular is labeled “cold, wet and white” on an almanac map.
A “very active” storm track is expected to move through Ohio and the eastern United States in the last week of January, bringing “frequent bouts” of gusty winds and heavy precipitation. Between January 20 and 27 in particular, there could be “large amounts of snow, rain, sleet and ice,” according to the almanac.
What does the Farmers’ Almanac say about fall in Columbus?
There is another season between Columbus and winter. And the Farmers Almanac has predictions for that too.
Ohio is in for a frosty and wet fall, according to the almanac. October, which is usually the clearest time of year in the eastern United States, will have up to twice as many cloudy and rainy days this year.
At least Halloween will be dry in Ohio, says the almanac. Election day will also be clear in the eastern United States.
What does the Farmers’ Almanac say about the rest of summer 2024 in Columbus?
Summer still has about a month to go. Here’s what Ohio can expect, according to the almanac.
- 24-27 August: The heavy rains are gradually easing and it is becoming a little cooler and drier.
- 28-31 August: There will be unseasonably cool air.
- 1 to 3 September: It will be an unseasonably cold Labor Day.
- 4 to 7 September: At first there will be showers, then it will clear up and unusually cool air for the time of year will spread eastward from the Great Lakes.
- 8-11 September: Another strong surge of unusually cold air will move south over the Great Lakes. Heavy rain showers will move east from the Ohio River Valley.
- 12-15 September: Showers and thunderstorms from the Great Lakes will spread as far south as Kentucky, then temperatures will cool.
- 16-19 September: There will be showers.
- 20-23 September: There will be light showers.
What is La Niña?
La Niña is a recurring climate pattern that occurs when trade winds, which push warm water westward from South America toward Asia, are stronger than usual. Colder water rises to the surface to replenish the warm water pushed toward Asia, which in turn affects weather patterns in the United States.
A cooler Pacific Ocean causes the Pacific jet stream, a fast current of air that circles the Earth, to move northward. According to the National Weather Service, this leads to colder and wetter conditions in northern states like Ohio and warmer and drier conditions in the southern U.S.
@NathanRHart
