One Extreme to the Other

January 2019 has gotten off to a mild start in Washington, D.C.

The start to 2019 couldn’t be more different than the way 2018 began.  Last January got underway in the midst of a frigid 12-day period with temperatures at or below 35° from December 27, 2017 – January 7, 2018.  Meanwhile, the first six days of 2019 were significantly warmer than average.  The high/low temperatures on January 6, 2018 were 21°/11°, compared to January 6, 2019 with 57°/39°.

Four of the last five January’s were colder than average in Washington, D.C.  In that time, three of the last five January’s also featured below average snowfall.  The exception was in January 2016 when Washingtonians experienced their fourth largest snowstorm on record.  It was also DC’s second largest January snowstorm behind only the 1922 “Knickerbocker Storm.”  

This winter has been a disappointment thus far for DC-Area snow lovers.  Following DC’s most significant November snowfall since 1989 less than two months ago, no snow has fallen since December 1.  In fact, December 2018 finished as DC’s eighteenth warmest dating back to 1871 and was only the third December in the last 20 years to finish without any snowfall.

However, that should not create consternation among area snow lovers.  Two winters in the last five years had significantly warmer than average Decembers, but were followed by colder and snowier than average January’s.  While December 2013 finished 2.6° warmer than average in Washington, D.C., January 2014 finished 3.5° colder than average along with above average monthly snowfall.  Only two years later, Washingtonians experienced the warmest December on record in 2015 (11.5° warmer than average) with no snowfall.  Then January 2016 finished 1.1° colder than average with DC’s fourth largest snowfall on record.

Longtime Washingtonians and local weather enthusiasts know that the right ingredients only need to come together once to produce an epic snowfall.  Colder than average temperatures are on tap later this week in the Nation’s Capital.  Because accurately forecasting winter weather requires a high degree of skill and experience, it’s important to rely on reputable sources for your weather forecasts, like my colleagues and I on the WUSA9 Weather Team.