Saturday, December 15, 2012

Global White Christmas

From Wikipedia:
"White Christmas Around the World"

White Christmases in Canada :

In most parts of Canada it is likely to have a white Christmas in most years, except for the coast and southern interior valleys of British Columbia, southern Alberta, southern Ontario, and parts of Atlantic Canada - in those places Christmas without snow is not uncommon in warmer years, with the British Columbia coast the least likely place to have a white Christmas. The definition of a white Christmas in Canada is 2 cm (0.79 in) of snow-cover or more on Christmas morning at 7 am.[6]
Environment Canada released data that averages from 1955-2011 the chance of a White Christmas in several Canadian cities.[6]

Location Probability
Vancouver 11%
Calgary 56%
Edmonton 86%
Saskatoon 93%
Regina 91%
Winnipeg 98%
Sudbury 95%
Windsor 46%
Toronto 46%
Ottawa 81%
Montreal 77%
Quebec City 98%
Halifax 58%
St. John's 61%
Whitehorse 100%
Yellowknife 100%

 

White Christmases in the United States:


In the United States, there is often - but not always - snow on the ground at Christmas in the northern states, except in the Pacific Northwest, with the northern Plains the most likely to see snow on the ground at Christmas. Some of the least likely white Christmases that have happened include the 2004 Christmas Eve Snowstorm, which brought the first white Christmas in 50 years to New Orleans and caused the first recorded white Christmas in Houston, Texas. The 2004 storm also brought the first measurable snow of any kind since 1895 to Brownsville, Texas, and its twin city of Matamoros, Mexico. The Florida winter storm of 1989 also occurred immediately before Christmas causing a white Christmas for cities like Pensacola and Jacksonville. The same storm buried Wilmington, North Carolina and the rest of Southeastern North Carolina under 15 in (38 cm) of snow.

 

 
Probability of a white Christmas in the United States 1981-2010

 

Location Probability
Anchorage, Alaska 90%
Annette Island, Alaska 17%
Fairbanks, Alaska 100%
Phoenix, Arizona 1%
Little Rock, Arkansas 3%
Los Angeles, California 1%
Denver, Colorado 50%
Hartford, Connecticut 57%
Wilmington, Delaware 13%
Washington, D.C. 5%
Savannah, Georgia 1%
Honolulu, Hawaii 0%
Boise, Idaho 30%
Chicago, Illinois 40%
Indianapolis, Indiana 13%
Des Moines, Iowa 50%
Topeka, Kansas 23%
Louisville, Kentucky 13%
Portland, Maine 83%
Boston, Massachusetts 23%
Detroit, Michigan 50%
Marquette, Michigan 90%
Duluth, Minnesota 97%
St. Louis, Missouri 23%
Helena, Montana 67%
Omaha, Nebraska 44%
Reno, Nevada 20%
Concord, New Hampshire 23%
Newark, New Jersey 23%
Albuquerque, New Mexico 3%
Massena, New York 77%
New York City, New York 22%
Charlotte, North Carolina 5%
Fargo, North Dakota 83%
Cleveland, Ohio 60%
Akron, Ohio 60%
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 3%
Portland, Oregon 1%
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 10%
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 33%
Providence, Rhode Island 37%
Charleston, South Carolina 1%
Rapid City, South Dakota 47%
Nashville, Tennessee 12%
Amarillo, Texas 7%
Dallas, Texas 7%
Salt Lake City, Utah 53%
Richmond, Virginia 7%
Seattle, Washington 8%
Spokane, Washington 70%
Charleston, West Virginia 30%
Huntington, West Virginia 23%
Milwaukee, Wisconsin 60%
Casper, Wyoming 47%

 

  White Christmases in the United Kingdom:


In the United Kingdom, white Christmases were more common from the 1550s to the 1850s, during the Little Ice Age, but during the 20th Century there were only seven official white Christmases in England.

 

Location Probability
London 6%
Birmingham 15%
Aberporth 9%
Glasgow 35%
Aberdeen 53%
Belfast 22%
Lerwick 75%
Bradford 14% (since 1971)
St Mawgan 10% (since 1957)


  White Christmases in Ireland ;

In Ireland, the prospect of early winter snow is always remote due to the country's mild and wet climate (snowfall is most common in January and February). Bookmakers offer odds every year for a white Christmas, which is officially lying snow being recorded at 09:00 local time on Christmas Day, and recorded at either Dublin Airport, Belfast International Airport or Cork Airport (bets are offered for each airport). Snow is most common in the north, and, as such, Belfast usually has better odds than Dublin, and considerably better odds than Cork, which is at the extreme south of the country.
Since 1961, countrywide, snow has fallen on 17 Christmas Days (1961, 1962, 1964, 1966, 1970, 1980, 1984, 1990, 1993, 1995, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2004, 2009 and 2010), with nine of these having snow lying on the ground at 09:00 (1964, 1970, 1980, 1993, 1995, 1999, 2004, 2009 and 2010). The maximum amount of lying snow ever recorded on Christmas Day was 27 centimetres at Casement Aerodrome in 2010.

 

White Christmases in Romania:


Location Probability
Bucharest 75%
Iași 80%
Timişoara 70%
Cluj Napoca 85%
Constanta 65%
Miercurea Ciuc 90%
Craiova 75%
Braşov 85%
Satu Mare 75%

White Christmases in other parts of Europe:


In Europe, snow at Christmas is common in Norway, Sweden, Finland, the Baltic States, Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, and Poland. In general, due to the influence of the warm Gulf Stream on European climate, chances of a white Christmas are lower the further west. For example, in southern France a white Christmas is very rare, while in Bucharest, Romania, which is at a similar latitude, it is much more likely. Northern Italy and the mountain regions of central-south Italy may also have a white Christmas. In cities such as Turin, Milan or Bologna a Christmas with falling snow or snow on the ground is not a rarity.

Southern Hemisphere:


Because Christmas occurs during the summer, white Christmases are especially rare events in the Southern hemisphere, apart from Antarctica which is generally uninhabited. In 2006, a snowstorm hit the Snowy Mountains in New South Wales and Victoria, arriving on Christmas Morning and bringing nearly 12 in (30 cm) of snow in higher areas.[13] This was an especially rare event because it occurred during Australia's typically warm summer. However a significant accumulation of hail, which can fall in the summer, occurred on the ground in some areas of Melbourne on Christmas Day 2011, giving the appearance of a 'White Christmas'.[14] In New Zealand's Southern Alps snow can fall any day of the year and a white Christmas is very possible. A white Christmas in the southern hemisphere (specifically those close to Antarctica) is approximately equivalent to having snow in the northern hemisphere on June 25, and in some ways is even less likely because the Northern Hemisphere has population centers farther from the equator than does the Southern Hemisphere.
 
^ This was interesting - especially after my last post. ^ 
 

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