NOUS41 KCTP 230320 PNSCTP PAZ028-050-052-056-057-059-063-065-066-231530- PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE STATE COLLEGE PA 1020 PM EST MON DEC 22 2008 ...PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT... WITH CHRISTMAS JUST A FEW DAYS AWAY...THE QUESTION ALWAYS SEEMS TO ARISE AS TO WHETHER WE WILL HAVE THAT NOSTALGIC WHITE CHRISTMAS THAT SO MANY SEASONAL SONGS REMINISCE ABOUT. WELL IT SEEMS THAT IN HARRISBURG...A WHITE CHRISTMAS IS THE EXCEPTION RATHER THAN THE RULE. OF THE 120 YEARS THAT RECORDS HAVE BEEN KEPT IN THE CAPITAL CITY...JUST 32 OF THEM HAVE BEEN "WHITE". A WHITE CHRISTMAS IS DEFINED AS ONE WHERE THERE IS AN INCH OR MORE OF SNOW ON THE GROUND ON CHRISTMAS MORNING. SO THE RECORDS SHOW THAT ONLY IN ABOUT ONE OUT OF FOUR YEARS DO WE HAVE ENOUGH SNOW AROUND TO MAKE THE DAY QUALIFY. SO WHAT CAN WE USUALLY EXPECT ON A TYPICAL CHRISTMAS DAY? ON AVERAGE THE HIGH TEMPERATURE IS ABOUT 39 DEGREES AND THE LOW 25. BUT OF COURSE THIS CAN VARY WIDELY AS WE SAW IN 1983 WHEN THE HIGH TEMPERATURE WAS A BONE CHILLING 7 DEGREES. CHECK OUT HTTP://DOCS.LIB.NOAA.GOV/RESCUE/DWM/DATA_RESCUE_DAILY_WEATHER_MAPS.HTML TO GET A LOOK AT THE WEATHER MAP FOR THAT DAY AND SEE WHAT CAUSED THE ARCTIC CHILL. ON THE FLIP SIDE IT CAN ALSO BE DOWNRIGHT BALMY ON DECEMBER 25TH. BACK IN 1889 WE SAW THE WARMEST CHRISTMAS EVER WHEN IT HIT 66 DEGREES. AS RECENTLY AS 1982 IT TOPPED 60 AS WELL. WHEN IT COMES TO THE CHANCES OF SNOW ON THAT DAY...LESS THAN ONE YEAR IN FIVE SEES MEASURABLE SNOW ON CHRISTMAS. BUT THERE HAVE SOME VERY PICTURESQUE HOLIDAYS EVEN AS RECENTLY AS 2002 WHEN AN ALMOST CLASSIC NOR`EASTER MOVED UP AND DROPPED MORE THAN 9 INCHES OF SNOW ON THE STATE CAPITAL...WITH 8 INCHES OF THAT FALLING CHRISTMAS DAY. THAT BY THE WAY SET THE DAILY RECORD FOR MOST SNOW ON DECEMBER 25TH IN HARRISBURG. WHAT`S IN STORE FOR THIS YEAR? UNFORTUNATELY THE PROSPECTS OF A WHITE CHRISTMAS LOOK DIM. DESPITE THE COLD AIR OF RECENT DAYS...THE NEXT STORM SYSTEM LOOKS DESTINED TO SPREAD MAINLY RAIN OVER THE AREA CHRISTMAS EVE...BEFORE COOLER AND DRIER AIR RETURNS TO THE REGION CHRISTMAS DAY. SO THAT WILL MAKE IT SIX YEARS SINCE THE LAST WHITE CHRISTMAS. SOME OF THE COLDEST...WARMEST AND SNOWIEST CHRISTMAS`S OF YEARS PAST INCLUDE: THE TOP 5 COLDEST: YEAR MAX T MIN T RAIN SNOW 1983 7 -3 0 0 1980 16 1 0 0 2000 22 16 0 0 1969 22 8 .40 .4 1968 23 16 0 0 THE TOP 5 WARMEST: YEAR MAX T MIN T RAIN SNOW 1889 66 44 .04 0 1964 65 36 .06 0 1893 63 34 0 0 1982 61 36 .02 0 1965 60 36 .30 0 THE TOP 5 SNOWIEST: YEAR MAX T MIN T RAIN SNOW 2002 34 30 .87 8.0 1904 23 16 .44 4.5 1909 30 24 .52 4.4 1969 22 8 .40 4.1 1962 26 23 .22 2.6 WE HERE AT THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN STATE COLLEGE WISH YOU AND YOURS A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR!! $$ LA CORTE