'Clearly a green Christmas:' Climatologist forecasts the winter Windsorites can expect
Winter season begins Tuesday at 11 a.m.
The winter season is finally here, but Environment Canada climatologist tells Windsorites not to break out their shovels or toboggans just yet.
"I think it's a mixed bag this year," said David Phillips, a senior climatologist for Environment and Climate Change Canada.
He added that there will be periods of snow, but then likely systems that bring in rain for the region.
As for Christmas, Phillips said other than a few flurries, it won't be a snowy one for the southwestern Ontario region. And that's been a common trend in the last eight years, he said, adding that six Christmases have been "green" and only two have been "white."
"Really you have to do more than dreaming about it, you have to kind of have to pray for it, I think, if you want one" he said. "And this [Christmas] is just impossible, I just don't see it ... I think this is clearly a green Christmas."
For Friday, Phillips said residents can expect a high of 5 C and a low of 3 C at night, along with a 70 per cent chance of rain. The high during the daytime is 5 C warmer than usual, he said.
Closer to New Years is when there might be enough snow for kids to enjoy, Phillips said.
Looking ahead at the coming months, he said "winter is going disappear and then it's going to come back," adding that might make it tough for people hoping to build a backyard skating rink.
"What we think the winter is going to be is a little bit of up and down, back and forth," he said.
"That's the kind of pattern we'll see. You're going to see the grass or the dirt at times [and] at times it's going to be covered by snow."
