Breaking: Revised Winter Outlook For North Dakota Revealed

NOAA & The National Weather Service have revised their winter outlook for the Northern Plains and North Dakota.

Weather experts have been predicting that we would be transitioning from an El Nino weather pattern to STRONG La Nina. Something that was expected to happen by the end of our summer. It never materialized.

A La Nina winter typically brings us a colder and wetter winter.

That's on a typical winter but oftentimes varies. Now, NOAA is saying we will still transition to a La Nina weather pattern later in 2024, but it is likely to be a WEAKER La Nina than previously thought.

We are coming off of an El Nino winter that brought us a very warm winter in North Dakota with very little snowfall.

Let's face it, it was balmy in Bismarck and most of North Dakota last winter. Many winter outdoor enthusiasts would've actually preferred some more snow and colder temperatures to keep the snow around. Especially, snowmobilers, snow skiers, and ice fishermen.

What does a WEAKER La Nina mean for North Dakota for the winter of 2025?

The revised forecast from NOAA/National Weather Service is showing the following:

As you can see, the revised winter outlook still shows North Dakota with colder-than-normal temperatures during the winter.  However, because of the weaker La Nina, we may not end up quite as brutally cold.

Precipitation is still expected to be about normal for winter in North Dakota.

Bismarck averages 46 inches of snow typically. The bad news? Without a bigger push of wet weather this winter our drought conditions are likely to persist over the next few months.