If you are not hardcore weather you may be asking yourself what the heck is the NAO and why is this weather signal so important to winter storms east of the Mississippi?  

It's like a traffic cop of weather and when this traffic cop in Greenland slows down the weather pattern it allows for storms to develop along the east coast and it allows allows the cold air to hang around a bit longer to feed into these nor'easter beasts.

So now you may be asking does that mean less snow and cold for the winter ahead ? Well it all depends on where you live. We talked about this in our winter outlook and told you it's not one factor that decides how cold or snowy a winter will get...it's the combo and teleconnections of all of them that brings snowstorms & cold weather.

It could not resist...just kiddin on this but a funny cartoon on El Nino. So with El nino not a MAJOR factor what are we left with for the next few months ?

Well the one thing that will set this winter is the big dip in the NAO or North American Oscillation. This is known as the Greenland Block.

This is how we see the block now and at the end of DECEMBER. So what does that means for snowstorms ? Simply put...higher risk for snow along the east and maybe even the south under the right conditions.

The Arctic Oscillation is a pool of Arctic Air that comes down south when there is not a lock on the Arctic air stating north.

REGISTER ON OUR WEBSITE, IT TAKES ALL OF 10 SECONDS

GET UPDATES, ALERTS, SEASONAL OUTLOOKS & CONTESTS