I would not be surprised at all if we had a cold/snowy winter in the near future or even several of them, and that's regardless of whatever may or may not be happening with global warming. For several winters, the jet stream has not flexed southward over us during mid-winter very often to optimize our chances of severe cold/snow. But it has done so in other parts of the country, and it has done so in our region at other times of the year. So I figure it's just a matter of time til that southward buckle happens for a considerable period of time during winter. This winter, next winter, several winters ... it's a crap shoot, just like picking out 2 weeks in spring months in advance to hit a stormy pattern in the central U.S. on our storm chase.

Maybe this question should be submitted to journal, I am not sure, but I would like to hear your thoughts on this. Last week a guy named Mark Vogan entered a blog on accuweather in the Meteo Maddness section, and basically he warned of significant cold and snow for a large portion of the lower 48 this coming winter. His basis was on several La nina paterns, and last years strong La nina, followed by this years developing El nino. He said that there was building cold, and the larger the cold gets, the colder it gets, and so on. He wrote that the expansion of cold is so large and so cold, that the only way to get rid of now would be for a major cold outbreak, one that many on the eastern seaboard hve not seen for 2o years to take place this winter and several winters to come. I am all for cold and snow, and I was just curious if you had read this, or heard anything like this from anyone else.

M