December doesn't end for another two weeks, but if this warm trend lingers and we end up with no snow or just a trace of the white stuff, how rare would that be?
We're more than halfway through December and the only snowflakes we're seeing are those fake plastic ones clinging to the windows of storefronts, schools and houses.
No winter storm warnings, no plows on the road, no measurable snow to add to the official record books in New Jersey -- even in the cooler and hillier northwestern corner of the state.
Yes, we still have two weeks to go before the month wraps up, but if this warm trend lingers and we end up with no snow or just a trace of the white stuff, how rare would that be?
Not as rare as you might think.
Since 1895, New Jersey has had 25 Decembers with less than 1 inch of snowfall, said David Robinson, the state climatologist at Rutgers University. Of those 25, seven were completely snowless: 1943, 1953, 1965, 1994, 1990, 2006 and 2011.
Of the seven snowless December years, five (1943, 1954, 1994, 1990 and 2006) were similar to this year, with no measurable snowfall not only in December but also in October and November, Robinson said. Measurable snow is considered one-tenth of an inch, or more.
"If no measurable snow falls this month, it will be the eighth such December and the sixth time we've gone through the cold season through December without seeing measurable snow anywhere in New Jersey," Robinson said. "The last time this happened was 2006."
Snowless in Newark
In the past 84 years, there have been 15 Decembers in Newark with either no snow at all or just a trace, said Faye Barthold, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Upton, N.Y., which handles forecasts and weather data for northeastern New Jersey.
Two Decembers (2001 and 2011) were completely snowless in Newark, Barthold said. And 13 Decembers had just a trace of snow -- less than one-tenth of an inch. That was the case in 2006, 1999, 1996, 1994, 1978, 1972, 1965, 1954, 1953, 1943, 1937, 1934 and 1931.
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Will 2015 join the list of snow-free Decembers?
"So far, this year is on track to add to that," Barthold said.
The most snow Newark ever received in December was 29.1 inches, back in 1947. Newark normally gets 5.4 inches of snow in December, and the statewide average is 4.9 inches.
Warm streak continues
Temperatures have been running far above normal this entire month, breaking numerous daily records across New Jersey. And although a wave of cold air will be sweeping in this weekend, bringing temperatures down to where they should be this time of year, above-normal temperatures are expected to return next week and continue through Christmas.
Among the interesting trends emerging this month:
* New Brunswick had six consecutive days with temperatures reaching 60 degrees or higher, breaking the city's previous record of four straight December days with 60-degree highs.
* Newark had six straight days with temperatures of 60 degrees or warmer -- just one day short of the city's record of seven straight December days with 60-degree highs. That happened in 1998, when Newark saw 60-degree readings from Dec. 1 through Dec. 7, as well as the final three days of November.
* One weather station in New Jersey -- the Atlantic City Marina station -- has not hit the freezing mark once this entire season. The lowest reading at that station was 33 degrees, recorded on Nov. 23 and also on Nov. 24.
Len Melisurgo may be reached at LMelisurgo@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @LensReality. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
FLASHBACK TO 2010
For everyone who forgot what snow looks like, here's a flashback to February 2010, when a monster storm hit New Jersey.
