Forecasters 'Strongly' Favor Snowy Winter In NoVa: Report

The Northern Virginia area is going to get slammed by snow this winter, at least if you believe the long-range projections of local forecasters.

The Washington Post reports that winter outlooks from seven organizations all predicted between 20 to 30 inches of snow, which is quite a bump from our average of 15.4 inches.

The reason is because of a developing El Nino event, which tends to bring above-average snowfall to our area.

However, the Post noted that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration was much more conservative in its projections, agreeing that there would be above-normal precipitation but not so confident on that extra moisture being in the form of snow.

A lot of the uncertainty stems from the strength of the El Nino event. Right now, it looks weak, but it could strengthen over the coming months.

There are other factors at play that could result in above-normal snowfall for the greater D.C. area. This El Nino is in the central tropical Pacific Ocean, a location that lends itself to more snow in our region. Also, the sun is near its lowest intensity in its 11-year cycle. And finally, the European weather prediction model has been bullish on a snowy winter in multiple forecasts, the Post noted.

If we do get hit with snow, it's most likely to happen in January and February.

The forecaster with the biggest snow prediction is Joe Bastardi of WeatherBell, who believes that Dulles will get 34 inches this season. The most conservative was WUSA9, which called for as little as 20 inches but as much as 30 inches.

WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 21: People snow sled on the grounds of the U.S. Capitol March 21, 2018 in Washington, DC. An early spring storm brought several inches of snow to the East Coast, the fourth nor'easter in recent weeks. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)