Snowfall Now A Little Below Normal In Vermont. That Could Change

Snow cover in my yard in St. Albans, Vermont, in the northwest
corner of the state, is now remarkably thin for late January.

Up until now, this winter's snowfall as measured at the National Weather Service office in South Burlington, Vermont has been running a little above average. 

Not any more. After a week or two of occasional thaws and storms that favored rain and mixed precipitation, snowfall for the season as of Sunday was 0.7 inches below normal.

That's not a huge deficit, for sure, but it is a change. And that slight snow deficit will probably grow a little this week as not much snow is in the forecast. At least as it appears now.

One storm that had potential is sliding by too far to our east tonight and tomorrow to give us in Vermont anything of note. There are a few flurries around, and there might be some tomorrow, too, but don't count on any big dumps.

Valley locations across Vermont don't have much snow left at all. I was able to get outside and cut some brush on my property in St. Albans, Vermont yesterday, as there was only an inch or two left on the ground. The official measurement in Burlington yesterday morning was two inches.

There's more in the mountains, of course, so it's not like the ski industry is bereft. It's just that we haven't had any big powder days in awhile.

Thaws have temporarily taken their toll across much of the United States. Just 27.5 percent of the Lower 48 in the United States is now covered in snow, the lowest percentage since 2006.

If you're a snow lover, take heart. There is that well-advertised weather pattern change coming in, which favors colder than normal temperatures in the central and eastern United States.

This upcoming weather pattern also favors storminess in the East and Northeast, though I can't promise anything big. Things have to come together just right to get a decent dump from a nor'easter, and it's not possible to forecast that a week or more ahead.

In the shorter term, there's one more mini-thaw to go through this week - on Thursday. But high temperatures in the 30s to low 40s that day won't do too much to rid us of what scant snow is left on the ground.

A sharp cold front Thursday night will probably dump some snow showers and maybe even snow squalls on us, which could create light accumulations in the valleys and maybe a bit more than that in the mountains.

Something else is coming through next weekend. Right now that system looks like it will only drop light snow on us, but we'll keep an eye on it.

Because of the higher sun angle this time of year, the South is getting a little warmer while the Arctic is still frigid. This kind of increased contrast often helps lead to the biggest snowstorms of the winter across Vermont between mid-February and mid-March.

Half of Burlington, Vermont's Top 20 biggest snowstorms have occured in February and March. You'll remember the big Pi Day snowstorm that dropped three feet of snow on sections of the state last March.

So, if you're sick of snow, you probably will remain sick of it for awhile. If you're a snow lover, there's still hope, just no guaratees.