Browning Newsletter, January 2015
January 5, 2015
Finally, some good news about the weather and the world. Arctic ice is making a comeback, rains may be coming to some drought-stricken areas, and we have found 18,000 new named species. For the weather junkies among us.
Conclusions
In 60% to 80% of similar years, we saw the following weather patterns:
The typical El Niño/volcanic winter, with moderate El Niño conditions, is warm in the West and cold in the Midwest and East. Typically the late winter is the most comparatively cold. California and the Southwest get normal to heavy rainfall and the Southern Plains get lush drought-breaking rainfall if the El Niño conditions last through springtime.
So far this year has tended to follow the historical pattern we have seen in similar years with a one-to-two week lag.
Barring volcanic wild cards, a chill winter should be followed by a comfortable spring with good planting conditions and pasturelands for farmers and ranchers.