GREENSBORO, N.C. — Why doesn't it snow like it used to? It's a question I get time and time again during the winter. Sure, it seems like it used to be a lot snowier when you were a kid… But is it true? Let's take a look at the numbers.
First, a starting point. If you average all the winters in Triad history, you'll find we average about 8 inches per year. That's a middle ground – several years above that, and several years below. It's an average.
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Now, let's take a look at the numbers. Throughout the years, we've had a lot of ups and downs with snow – but the trendline, is actually pretty consistent. That's right. Looking at the whole picture, we're not getting snowier or less snowy over time dating back to the 1920s.
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Breaking it down another way reveals something interesting.
Going by decade, we can see that if you're a child of the 60s or 70s – you played in more snow. What's more interesting, is that the 40s were our least snowy decade, followed by the 80s and 90s. Lately, we've actually been seeing *more snow* again.
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To look at it another way, how *often* does it snow? Historically, our average is between 2 and 3 days per year – which hasn't changed much. Breaking it down by decade shows that there was a peak in snowy days during the 60s and 70s, but that we're getting snow at a very healthy clip nowadays compared to average. So, we're doing just fine in the snow department here too.
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So, if snow data is fairly consistent looking at the long view, how does this explain our warmer winters?
Looking at the data, our winter-time temperatures have been getting warmer consistently through the years. The average temp during snow season – December to March – has warmed up 3 degrees since the 1930s to today. You'd think this would mean less snow, but that just hasn't been the case. Warmer winters don't *necessarily* mean that we see less snow.
So, does it snow like it used to?
To me, the data says yes – it does. But, it depends on when you grew up!
If you're a child of the 60s and 70s you were treated to some of the snowiest winters in Triad history, so it's a bit different than if you grew up in the 40s or 80s or 90s – you get the idea.
Of course, this winter is a bad one to have this conversation.
We're currently in one of the great "snow droughts" in Triad history. Over 420 days and counting.
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We'll be carefully watching the rest of February and March. It's been almost 30 years, since 1992, that we've had a winter with only a trace of snow.
Even though it's been warm, we still have almost 2 months to go - and we'll be watching!