Name: Record-breaking warmth chases away white Christmas dreams
Uploaded: 2025-12-23T13:59:10.685Z
Duration: 51 s
Description: A winter heat wave stretching from the South into the Plains and West could break records for the warmest Christmas on record with highs up to 30 degrees above average… The kicker? That means very few regions of the country are looking at a white Christmas this year.

A winter heat wave stretching from the South into the Plains and West could break records for the warmest Christmas on record with highs up to 30 degrees above average… The kicker? That means very few regions of the country are looking at a white Christmas this year.

Forecasts indicate that this year's chances for a white Christmas are significantly lower than historical averages across much of the United States. Persistent warmth and atmospheric rivers have created challenging conditions for the ski season, particularly in the Northeast, Northern tier, and some Western mountain areas.

A winter heat wave is expected to bring spring-like temperatures on Christmas Day, with widespread potential for record-breaking highs and warm overnight lows. Areas such as Wyoming and South Dakota are among those likely to experience these unusual temperature records.

Record-breaking warmth chases away white Christmas dreams

So you pick your spot and you go, okay, these are technically my chances from a historical standpoint. Where are we at this year? Oh, well, it looks even worse than the historical probabilities, obviously this year. Northeast is definitely one of those spots all the way up into the Northern tier, some mountains over the West, but let's be honest, it has been rough going for a lot of us as we're getting about to get into the busy ski season. And that's because this warmth has been so problematic. The atmospheric rivers have been problematic in the West Northwest, but for Christmas day, look at this forecast. It's in a color you technically would see as we work our way to spring and we got a heat wave. This is a winter heat wave that's gonna be bringing red dots all over the place. And those red dots would indicate where we could break records, whether it's daytime highs or record warm overnight lows, way up even in this Northern tier. We're talking Wyoming all the way up into South Dakota.

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