Which parts of the US can expect a white Christmas this year?

Each year, anyone who celebrates Christmas wonders if they’ll wake up to a coating of festive snow on Christmas morning.

In the United States, typically residents of the northern half of the country have the highest chance of seeing a White Christmas, with the exception of the far West Coast. In the U.S., a white Christmas is defined as having at least an inch of snow on the ground on Christmas morning.

This year, this is expected to hold largely true.

Most likely to see a white Christmas

A white Christmas is in store for places that have recently received a blanket of snowfall and temperatures are not expected to rise much above freezing.

These locations include much of the interior Northwest, the ski country of Utah and Colorado, and much of the Upper Midwest and New England, especially in areas downwind of the Great Lakes.

“Snow is already on the ground in cities such as Boise, Cheyenne, and Omaha, making a white Christmas likely in those cities,” said AccuWeather Meteorologist Ryan Adamson.

More recently, a quick-hitting storm increased the snow cover across the Midwest and New England on Thursday night and Friday.

Leading up to Christmas Day, a couple of storms will help to spread a white Christmas to more of those in the central and northeastern U.S.

A snowstorm, which spun up in the Rockies, brought 3 to 6 inches of snow to parts of the central Plains on Saturday night. This same storm will bring snow to the Midwest on Sunday.

“As a storm system moves across the Midwest on Christmas Eve, snow will fall in parts of Indiana, Ohio, and Michigan, giving these areas a white Christmas,” Adamson said.

“This storm will continue eastward on Christmas Eve night, bringing snow to West Virginia, Pennsylvania and New York,” he elaborated. He also specified that New England would then receive some snow on Christmas.

Possible areas of snow

A Pacific storm impacting the Northwest on Sunday will bring some additional snow to portions of the interior Northwest by Christmas, and might even provide a Christmas surprise for normally rainy areas.

Residents of Seattle may experience a white Christmas, while icy conditions will threaten areas farther south such as Portland, Oregon.

Anyone venturing out should drive slower than usual and be wary of road conditions, especially on bridges and overpasses.

Not likely to receive snow

Many places on the list of those who should not expect a white Christmas will not be surprised.

“As is usually the case, a white Christmas looks unlikely in southern locations, such as Dallas, Atlanta and Raleigh,” Adamson said.

Outside of the Sierra, California will be snow-free for Christmas along with the southern and southeastern U.S. and up to the Delmarva.

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