In today's Forecast Feed, Bernie Rayno takes a look at what the weather could look like during the holiday week.

A prolonged cold spell affecting the Midwest and Northeast United States is coming to an end, with temperatures expected to moderate and only minor surges of cold air forecasted in the coming days. As a result, significant snowfall is unlikely for most of the Midwest and Northeast, except for regions near the Great Lakes, disappointing those hoping for a white Christmas.

In contrast, the Western United States, particularly the Sierra Nevada and Northern Rockies, is expected to see increased snowfall during Christmas week, which is beneficial for regional water supplies. The Southeast and South Central U.S. will remain mostly warm, and any existing snow in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic is likely to melt, with rain expected on Christmas Day in most areas.

What could the weather be like for Christmas week?

Well, if you don't like the cold, this has been a long two weeks from the lakes toward the Northeast, but it is finally over. It was a cold front that came through the Midwest Northeast on Thanksgiving Day, and ever since that, it's been a cold, cold pattern. This latest cold air mass was the coldest of the season, but it is leaving. Now, as we get into the pattern beyond, without widespread cold air in place, there's just not going to be a lot of snow from the Midwest toward the Northeast. So snow lovers looking for a white Christmas, you're going to be disappointed I think in most locations except up near the lakes where we have a deep snowpack, and there's going to be enough surges of cold air coming in to keep the snow in place, although I don't see a lot of snow for a lot of the United States, the exception may be the West. All right, let me take you into this. I want to show you the cold here this morning. Here's the last shot right here this morning. This is the final end of the cold. It was a cold, cold Tuesday morning across the Northeast. Here's where all the cold air is. You can see it up in here. This is the Yukon Territory. This is the Northwest Territory. It's pretty cold air, not as cold as it was. Remember last week at this time we were looking at temperatures 40 to 50 degrees below zero, but what you're going to see is little shots of this cold coming into the Northern tier of the United States over the next three to five days. It's not as cold in the North Central United States, but it's not a blowtorch warmth that a lot of people thought it was going to be in the Northeast getting into Christmas. Let me show you what I mean. Here's the cold leaving. Here's a little shot of cold. You can see it coming in tomorrow night into Wednesday. Tell you what, there's going to be some strong winds and some snow with this. We'll take a look at that across northern parts of Minnesota. Look at that cold coming in. It's a piece of cold right in here. It's coming in mostly into the Northeast Wednesday into Thursday. Temperatures a little bit below where they should be. Then another shot of cold. This is Thursday into Friday. You see that. Then another shot of cold coming in. Look at this across the North Central United States, Wednesday, Saturday night into Sunday. You see that goes by and then you have another shot coming in. There we go. As we get into Tuesday and Wednesday from the lakes toward the Northeast on Christmas Eve. Now, the one thing that you see with all these cold shots, let's go over again as they come on through. The one area that really isn't going to be impacted is in here. The Southeast end of the South Central United States, although there will be a shot of cold there on Friday, but as we get into Christmas week, that's the one area that's going to be warm. All right. Talked about snow. Let me show you this. I want to show you this map. So this is the total snowfall from today into, let's say, Christmas morning. So here it is. This is where you're going to see some snow. This is from these fronts coming through with some snow and some lake effect snow to North Central United States. This is a site for sore eyes here, Western U.S. They really need the snow. For those that live in the East, you have to understand the way in which there's even enough water for people to live in the Western United States is all due to the snow in the mountains. And when you look at the current snowfall, let me show you that. I mean, this is bad news. This is how you get water shortages. I mean, this is nothing in these areas, especially in the California, cannot stress this enough for California. The way you stay out of water shortages is heavy amounts of snow in the Sierra that melt during the spring months and fill up the reservoirs. There is virtually nothing there now, but you see that that does start to change as we get into Christmas week. Again, you start picking up the snow in the Northern Rockies and the Sierra. We could really use some here in the Colorado River Basin as we go forward. There will be some as we get toward the last week of 2025, right, and get into 2026. So this is good news for the Western U.S. For the Northeast, if you're looking for snow, you're not going to really get any. Now, you've got this first front. Look at this, this upper low going across the North. You'll get some snow with this. This is going to be Wednesday night into Thursday. That goes by. Here comes another little dip in the jet stream. When's that? This is this weekend. But again, with the energy all up here, that's where the snow's going to be. And then, as we get into Christmas Eve, another front goes by. Now, what I've been looking for is with this front going by, let me show you what it looks like on the surface map Christmas Eve. So here it is. What I was thinking is, okay, you've got this front. Let me get this back where it was. I don't know why I did that. So you have this front coming on through. This is Christmas Eve. And what I was thinking is, you get a little piece of energy coming East. And then, it may pop a little snow Christmas Eve, Christmas Eve, and Christmas Day. And you can see, here's the energy that I'm looking at Christmas Eve in here. The problem is, is the cold air's not very established. So as that next storm comes, so here's your cold front, Christmas Eve, right in here. This is the European model, right here. You bring that in Christmas Eve. There it is. Let me draw that for you. Here's the front coming through the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic. So it's right in here. Now, what I thought could happen is, you get a little energy coming Eastward. You try to get a wave on this front, and you may sneak a little snow across parts of the Northeast. While that does look like that's going to happen, the cold air's not very well established. So when you look at the modeling here, this is European, so this is Christmas Day. See, here comes your next piece of energy. You see the precipitation in here, but the cold air is way up here. The cold air has retreated. So instead of getting snow, it's mostly going to be some rain Christmas Day into the 26th in here. There could be some ice across interior sections of New England with this, and it'll be right in here, like toward Burlington, Maine, and then up in Eastern Canada and Quebec, you'll get some snow. But for much of the Northeast and the Mid-Atlantic, no really chance of snow on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, and the snow that you have now will likely melt. Good news for the Western United States when you look at the weather pattern. Look at all these storms coming in Christmas week, and it'll look like there could be some more as we close out 2026. But snow in the Northeast Mid-Atlantic Christmas Day, doesn't look like it's going to happen.

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