A ‘PRETTY MILD’ HOLIDAY WEEK, NO INCLEMENT WEATHER FOR TRAVELERS
Highs will range from the upper 40s to low 50s
New Englanders can expect above-average temperatures with some scattered precipitation to wrap up December, with no inclement weather expected to burden holiday travel plans, according to the National Weather Service.
“It doesn’t really look like there would be any heavy downpours or anything that would make traveling in the rain more hazardous than normal,” Rob Megnia, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service’s Boston office, told the Herald on Sunday. “It looks like a favorable week for holiday travel.”
Highs on Christmas Day into Thursday will range from the upper 40s to the low 50s, and the low temperatures will fall between the upper 30s and low 40s.
While no inclement weather is anticipated for holiday travelers, a Wednesday night system will bring some precipitation into the area. Given the mild temperatures, that system will most likely be rain showers, according to Megnia.
More normal temperatures are expected at the end of the week heading into the weekend and the start of the new year.
“The general forecast for this week is pretty mild weather for late December standards and southern New England temperatures will be slightly above normal,” Megnia said.
Boston typically accumulates around six inches of snow by Christmas each December, he said, while snow has only been reported twice in Boston this season. Even higher-elevation areas such as the Berkshires and Worcester Hills are below normal for snowfall this year.
“Those two big rain systems we had come in are what we call inland runners so they pass to the west of New England and bring with it warmer air,” Megnia said. “If they track east and if they’re able to pull cold air from the north down, that could have resulted in snow. So just those storm tracks determined what precipitation we’ve had in the area.”
Megnia said it’s a bit too far out to determine if this December with less-than-average snowfall will set the tone for 2024 weather, but noted a report from earlier that this will be an El Niño winter, which tends to tilt towards a milder season.
“That could be the case for January, but it doesn’t mean that we can’t have a cold spell or snowstorm or two,” he said.