NWS says brace for another La Nina winter

Look up 'La Nina' in the dictionary and you will see, "a cooling of the water in the equatorial Pacific that occurs at irregular intervals and is associated with widespread changes in weather patterns complementary to those of El Nino, but less extensive and damaging in their effects."

But what exactly does this mean? It means a cold and wet event is about to arrive in western Montana, according to Jeff Kitsmiller, National Weather Service (NWS) forecaster. Current weather models are indicating a La Nina pattern for the area this winter, which means winter months will most likely be wetter and colder than normal.

Kitsmiller stated that current weather models have been different than any they have previously seen. "We have gone from a La Nina pattern last winter, into a warmer and drier El Nino pattern for the summer, and now back into a La Nina pattern for this winter again," Kitsmiller stated. According to Kitsmiller, this type of weather pattern change-up typically does not happen, as configurations tend to stay in place for roughly nine months to one year before changing.

The current NWS models reflect a rather strong signal for more than average precipitation and a slightly weaker signal for colder than average temperatures for the months of December, January and February. Depending on how much cooler the temperature actually gets, this could mean either a lot of rain or a lot of snow for the upcoming months.

The trusty Old Farmer's Almanac is in agreement with the NWS. They are also predicting La Nina to determine western Montana's winter weather, which for some locals might be good news. For those who are not quite as fond of winter, now might be a good time to start a long novel series or an intense indoor project.