Farmer’s Almanac: Expect one of coldest winters in many years
This coming winter could be one of the longest and coldest we've seen in years, according to the just released 2022 Farmer's Almanac.
Most of the United States should expect bone-chilling, below-average temperatures. In some places, such as New England and the Ohio Valley, the super cold will also bring lots of snow.
Southeast Wisconsin appears to be on the border between “cold, dry” and “cold, wet." The rest of the state falls more into the “cold, dry” category.
Above-average snowfall is in the forecast along a track from eastern Montana southward through the western halves of the Dakotas and into northeastern Colorado. While most of the West will remain relatively dry, all but the Pacific Coast and portions of the Southwest will get the frigid cold predicted for much of the nation.
Much of Canada, except for British Columbia, should be prepared to “weather the storms,” the Farmer's Almanac says, as winter will be punctuated by a series of storms leaving Canadians “snowed in, sleeted on, slushed about, soaked and otherwise generally soggy.”
For 230 years, the Farmer's Almanac has been making winter predictions, and says it's had about an 80% accuracy rate. It employs three scientific disciplines to make long-term predictions: solar science, which is the study of sunspots and other solar activity; climatology, which is the study of prevailing weather patterns; and meteorology, the study of the atmosphere.
The Farmers' Almanac contains common sense advice, calendars of moon phases and astronomical data, and suggestions for the best days to plant or harvest, or do a variety of things including giving up smoking and looking for a job.