That is the question everyone is asking. Well it looks like this winter will go into the record book as another winter with below average snowfall totals. Now that we are heading toward the middle of March, snowy weather chances drop significantly.

So what happened this year? We had cold enough temperatures at times and periods of stormy weather, but never the perfect setup. For most of the winter the storms tracked from the Gulf Coast through Tennessee, Kentucky, West Virginia and into New England. This pattern nearly always brings us wet weather, as warm air from the Gulf and Atlantic is pulled into Virginia ahead of the area of low pressure to our northwest. At times there was just enough low level cold air in place to see an ice to rain mix, but never cold enough for a true snowstorm.

What is the perfect setup? Our best snowstorms usually occur when a cold area of high pressure moves in from eastern Canada and sits to our northwest over Ohio and Pennsylvania. At the same time a strong area of low pressure develops along the Gulf Coast and moves northeast across northern Georgia into central North Carolina and through eastern Virginia. This would bring us plenty of Gulf and Atlantic moisture and would continue to wrap in cold air from the north. This pattern would guarantee a winter wonderland and several snow days to enjoy 6 to 12 inches of the white stuff.

Matt Ferguson

Meteorologist