Seattle has certainly had a warm start to fall. With record-breaking temperatures and forecasts that seem all over the place, it’s hard to know exactly what the weather is doing. AccuWeather has released its 2022-2023 weather forecast for the US and let’s just say it’s complicated. Here’s what’s in store for the Washington winter weather forecast.
AccuWeather claims to have a different predicting model than other weather forecast platforms. They use a “team of veteran long-range forecasters” who analyze computer models and look at how previous winters have played out, using their own personal experience to determine patterns.
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Despite having a unique prediction model, AccuWeather has also predicted a third La Niña winter. That being said, it will not be like the past two years.
According to AccuWeather senior meteorologist Paul Pastelok, “These third-year La Niñas are very tricky… With no two La Niña winters being exactly the same.” He describes this year’s winter weather setup as “one of the most complicated and dynamic in recent memory” due to all of the weather factors to come.
With an unusual winter come even more unusual factors. It turns out that the Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Ha’apai eruption in January 2022 could be messing with the global weather system. The unprecedented amount of debris spewed by the volcano into Earth’s atmosphere could still be having an effect on global weather, according to Pastelok. Who would’ve thought?
All that aside, Washington is also in for a unique winter because the last time we saw a weather pattern like this one was the winter of 2000-2001. The good news is that a “repeat of last winter’s early-season storms is unlikely, according to long-range forecasters.” That’s because the La Niña is “projected to weaken during the second half of the winter” meaning storms may take a more southerly track into California instead of staying in the PNW.
That being said, overall the winter is expected to be wetter and snowier according to AccuWeather’s newest report.
The best part of this whole Washington winter weather forecast is the fact that resorts in the Cascades are projected to have the best of the early-season ski conditions. So get ready for some wet and mild days and then a season full of pow.
