Weather Eye: The theory says winter will be mild, dry

The start of a new year has brought the start of a new weather pattern — much milder conditions with high freezing levels and periods of rain. Weather systems are forecast to move in from the west and southwest rather than from the colder regions of the Gulf of Alaska.

At least, that is the plan.

I am still collecting local rainfall reports for last month and I’ll report those in a future column. We all know last month was really cold, perhaps ranking in the ten coldest Decembers on record.

We didn’t have much in the way of snow except for the surprise snowstorm on the 29th, which was remarkable in itself in light of the rather moderate El Niño that’s in progress.

An El Niño’s effects usually become more pronounced in January, and we should see more of a split flow with storms heading north and south of us.

This would result in drier conditions, and mild temperatures as well, except during foggy inversions. February and March would be a continuation of the mild and dry conditions. Of course, we all know the weather has a mind of its own and we could get a few more surprises in the package.

Local weather observer Tyler Mode made a time-lapse video of our snow last week. If you would like to see it, go to my Web site at http://www.weathersystems.com and click on multimedia.

I have also redesigned my Web site, where you can find more local weather and other information for you to ponder.

Pat Timm is a local weather specialist. His column appears Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays. Reach him at weathersystems.com.