Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–December 14, 2012.  The National Climatic Data Center (NCDC) can help answer that age-old question. This year the Center updated a map that shows the climatological probabilities of a white Christmas across the Nation. The Probability of a White Christmas map, now based on the most recent 1981–2010 Climate Normals, shows the climatological probability (in percent) that a snow depth of at least 1 inch will be observed on December 25. The highest probabilities are in northern and mountainous areas of the country.

The actual conditions this year may vary widely from these probabilities because the weather patterns present will determine the snow on the ground or snowfall on Christmas day. These probabilities are useful as a guide only to show where snow on the ground is more likely.

If you would like to keep track of the snowfall across the United States on a daily basis, see NCDC’s U.S. Daily Snowfall map.