The New Mexico News — Forecasters have updated and released a series of seasonal weather maps over the past few weeks pointing to an early and wet winter for most of New Mexico and the Mountain West.
AccuWeather is predicting an early transition to winter for most of the Southwest, which translates to more snow days, if current predictions hold.
The wetter weather pattern set in over the Southwest is attributed to El Niño, a weather pattern that develops over the Pacific Ocean bringing more wet air masses east during cooler months. “The strengthening El Niño and exceptionally warm oceans have contributed to higher global temperatures on top of the long-term warming trend,” AccuWeather reported when releasing the latest forecasts.
The National Weather Service’s El Niño prediction center says that winter precipitation in New Mexico increases more than 150% , on average, during El Niñ0 winters, though even El Niño seasons have wide variability.
