That White Christmas You're Hoping for May Prove Elusive

If Bing Crosby has been cramming thoughts into your head about a white Christmas, NPR says "there's hope" for that, though it depends what part of the country you live in and looks likely there'll be just a small slice of snow-covered celebrations. "With few exceptions, it appears that what you see on the ground today is what you'll see on Christmas morning," AccuWeather meteorologist Brandon Buckingham tells USA Today, which adds that "one final stripe of snow is possible just before the holiday in portions of the Northeast."

In other words, you'll probably see snow in some capacity on Christmas if you're in the Rockies or Sierra Nevada mountain regions; in the lake-effect snow belts around the Great Lakes; in northern New England; in northern Minnesota and North Dakota; and in parts of the Appalachians. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Climate Prediction Center also says sections of Northern California and the Pacific Northwest could get slammed with some high-elevation snow. Most of the US, however, will experience "milder than average" temps on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, NPR notes, citing NOAA stats.

What even qualifies as a "white Christmas," anyway? According to Weather.com, there must be at least an inch of snow on the ground come Christmas morning (meaning it's OK if the snow actually fell on Christmas Eve or earlier). A lighter dusting of snow, however, "doesn't count." Fox Weather, meanwhile, details when the last white Christmas was for multiple major cities in the US, as well as the seven big cities that have never experienced one.

story continues below

The last really big white Christmas overall? In 2009, when much of the US was blanketed in snow. "Because of warmer temperatures driven by climate change," however, "the coldest temperatures are becoming less frequent in parts of the country," per NPR. AccuWeather offers a report breaking down possible snow coverage on Christmas, as well as where storms could affect holiday travel. (More white Christmas stories.)