SOCIAL MEDIA CONTRIBUTOR
It’s that most wonderful time of year when we ask ourselves: Will there be snow?
The odds of a “white Christmas” in Portland are … well, not great. Only about 1 percent, as a matter of fact.
Only two years stand out as having true white Christmases in Portland in recent years: 2008 and 2017. If you use the Portland Airport records as a guide, which go back to the late 1930s, there have been a few other years with small amounts of snow, but nothing really accumulating.
If you look further back, there were a couple more minor white Christmases earlier in the 20th century and late 19th century. Using that longer record, the chance of a white Christmas is about … 3 percent.
But don’t get too excited. The forecast for the Christmas right now calls for warmer than average temperatures, which doesn’t support the possibility of snow on Dec. 25.
However, weather is very variable, so we can’t rule it out until the day gets closer.
— Paul Loikith, director of Portland State’s Climate Science Lab
