Just like that, winter in Chicago is almost here. And the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says it's likely going to be a wet one.
According to NOAA's U.S Winter Outlook released Thursday, "wetter-than-average" conditions are predicted for the Great Lakes region, courtesy of La Niña -- a weather pattern that occurs in the Pacific Ocean guided by winds at the ocean's surface.
"In the winter of a La Niña year, these winds are much stronger than usual," NOAA says. "This makes the water in the Pacific Ocean near the equator a few degrees colder than it usually is. Even this small change in the ocean’s temperature can affect weather all over the world."
And while in the southern part of the U.S., La Niña's third-consecutive return brings drier-than-average conditions, for the Ohio Valley, the Great Lakes, the northern Rockies and the Pacific Northwest, it is predicted to bring more precipitation.
And if temperatures are cold enough, that means more snow.
So what are the temperatures predicted for winter? According to NOAA, the Midwest is likely to see a fairly typical season.
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In other words: Not unusually warm, and not unusually cold.
According to the prediction, from Dec. 2022 through Feb. 2023, temperatures in the Chicago area and for much of Illinois are neither expected to be warmer-than-average, nor colder-than-average.
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The western part of the state though may see some frostier days.
"Below-normal temperatures are favored from the Pacific Northwest eastward to the western Great Lakes and the Alaska Panhandle," NOAA says.
The good news is, it's not quite time to put away your flip flops just yet. This coming weekend in the Chicago area is expected to be in the 70s, according to NBC 5 Storm Team.
NOAA's next Climate Prediction Center update will be released Nov. 17.
