Will This Winter Be As Bad As Last Year

[Fish Felon]

What's your prediction, better or worse than last year?

I think it will be better. I don't see how it can be any worse.

Global warming pretty much everywhere...except MN...

[cstemig]

The "Farmer's Almanac" and some of the network forecasters say it will be worse....haven't checked the fuzzy caterpillars lately. I would guess that it will be similar to last year, something out of the ordinary.

[Fish Felon]

Someone was just telling me about the caterpillar thing...what is it again? It was the first time I've heard it and already forgot.

[greatwhitehunter3!]

Can't get much colder but I suppose we'll get more snow this year too...

[h2ofwlr]

The NWS and others were touting that we were to get a major ElNino this fall/winter which means warmer and drier for the upper midwest. But that was a few months back, so not sure if they revised it.

[maplelakeduckslayer]

Some are still saying el nino, some are saying a bad Winter. We'll have to wait and see.

[tyler]

El Nino, Spanish for The Nino

[cstemig]

Someone was just telling me about the caterpillar thing...what is it again? It was the first time I've heard it and already forgot.

If my memory is still working, the caterpillar thing was about the thickness of their fuzzy skins. The fuzzier the skin, the colder the upcoming winter.

[h2ofwlr]

I heard it as the wider the brown area, the warmer the winter.

Moot point as it is myth http://www.crh.noaa.gov/arx/?n=woollybear

[lanyard]

Wait a second... you mean that predicting a winter's outcome based on fur thickness, fat layers, and other physical traits is like, like, like.... THE BIG PUSH?

How's this: Farmers Almanac says it's going to be worse with temps to -40 below in upper plains/mid-west the last week of January. Meanwhile.... National Geographic is reporting government predictors indicate temperatures about 16% above last year.

National Geographic is kind enough to point out that weather is rather unpredictable this far out.... brilliant.