Rainy days for winter

Complaints about cold weather have been running rampant around campus this season, but according to Scott Sistek, weather producer for KOMO 4 News, Seattle is having very normal winter temperatures.

"Overall, for November, [we were] right on average. The lack of snow in the mountains through early December points to it that it hasn't been too chilly, especially considering some years have had enough snow for ski resorts to open by Thanksgiving," he said.

In comparison, eastern Washington gets considerably colder than Seattle does. This is due to Seattle's oceanic influence. Because the ocean water is not frozen, air coming in from the ocean is not freezing. According to Sistek, that oceanic air acts as an "electric blanket" during the winter months for the Seattle area's lower 2,000 feet of atmosphere.

Brian Ancell in the Department of Atmospheric Sciences at the UW said, "A typical Seattle winter is cool, wet and cloudy." This is also due to oceanic influence, something Ancell explained as being bittersweet.

"The ocean is a curse and a blessing, keeping things warmer than they would be over inland areas like Eastern Washington, but also keeping things rather cloudy and rainy."

Ask anyone, Seattle is known for its rain. Yet although this area receives more rain-fall than most, what's more characteristic of the Pacific Northwest is the dull gray, cloud covered skies above. On average, 22 to 25 days in each of the winter months are cloudy all day, which, as Sistek described, is not a good time of year for lovers of the sun.

But as lifeless as the clouds may seem, it doesn't stop the thoughts of winter time snow from crossing the minds of students looking for an unexpected day off of school. This year's outlook is bleaker than normal.

Snow events usually hit Seattle once or twice a year, but due to the influence of a weak El Nino being in place, "this boils down to a decrease in the chance for snow in Seattle this winter," said Ancell. Looks like students may have to take a rain-check on that day full of snowball fights on Greek Row and sledding in Ravenna Park.

But all is not lost. Looking on the bright (or 'white') side of things, Sistek claims that statistically we actually should be expecting a white Christmas this year.

"The odds in Seattle are generally 7 percent, once in every 14 years. The last one [white Christmas] was in 1990 -- so we're due."