Fall 2013 Temperature Outlook: Cooler Autumn Expected for South, Great Lakes and Northern Plains

August 20,2013



 

WSI

Fall 2013 Outlook

WSI makes a fall seasonal outlook.

The summer of 2013 has been far from average.
Parts of the Southeast have had an oddly cool season, while drought has enveloped the Intermountain West. For example, by time of year, on average, Atlanta has seen nearly 40 days at or above 90 degrees. But so far, Atlanta has only reached or surpassed 90 degrees 11 times. In contrast, Salt Lake City sees about 57 days at or above 90 on average per year. Summer's not over and Salt Lake City has seen 62 days at or warmer than 90 degrees.
Some of those weather trends are expected to continue, according to a three-month outlook The Weather Company released Monday. Dr. Todd Crawford, chief meteorologist at Weather Services International (WSI), a part of The Weather Company, says tcool weather will stay entrenched from the northern Plains through the Southeast. Other parts of the country will likely be fairly close to climatological norms, if perhaps just slightly warmer.

Fall 2013 Temperature Outlook

Region	September Compared to Average	September Compared to Average	September Compared to Average
Northeast	Warmer	Warmer	Warmer
Southeast	Cooler	Cooler	Cooler
North Central	Cooler	Cooler	Cooler
South Central	Warmer	Warmer	Warmer
Northwest	Warmer	Warmer	Warmer
Southwest	Warmer	Warmer	Warmer

That's potentially welcome news to your wallet. Chris Kastas from ESAI Power LLC explains: "Weather-related energy demand is generally very soft in October. New England can buck the trend as seasonal norms begin to fall, but with warmer-than-normal temperatures expected in that region this October, delivered natural-gas prices may remain soft."
(MORE: Swing States: America's Most Extreme Temperature Ranges)
Although winter is still months away, Crawford offers glimpse of what to expect.
"A very early look at indicators for the upcoming winter suggest that atmospheric blocking may be favored again this winter, which would favor below-normal temperatures across significant parts of the United States," Crawford said. "However, it is still too early to have any reasonable level of confidence in the winter forecast since many of the key drivers don’t reveal themselves until October, which is when our first official winter forecast will be released."

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Signs of Fall

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Gold lines the mountainside near Snowmass Village, Colo. This image was captured in the mountains looking towards independence Pass. iWitness/Wigs42