What the Farmer’s Almanac says about Alabama’s 2024 winter: Bitter cold and snow coming?

Old Man Winter may not be through with Alabama just yet. There are hints that more bitter cold could be coming back to the South in the next few weeks.

But there’s no word yet on whether the “S” word will come into play.

Forecasters from the National Weather Service to the Farmer’s Almanac are suggesting the phrase “unseasonably cold” will be added to Alabama’s weather forecasts in the next few weeks.

The Almanac’s February forecast for the Southeast — which involves several southern states including Alabama and points farther north — predicts that the cold will arrive between Feb. 12 and 15, and unseasonably cold temperatures will persist through Feb. 19.

But that may not be all. The Almanac’s forecast for Feb. 20-23 calls for “much colder” temperatures for the Southeast. More below-average temperatures are also in the forecast for Feb. 24 through the end of the month.

But what do other forecasters have to say about that?

NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center is also suggesting that the middle of the month could bring more below-average temperatures back to Alabama.

Forecasters are watching extremely cold air far to the north — which has made even Alaskans shiver — and that air could make its way southward over the next few weeks.

The next few days will feature near-average weather, according to the National Weather Service, and the Climate Prediction Center’s six- to 10-day temperature outlook shows near-normal temperatures for Alabama into mid-February:

But a change is forecast in the eight- to 14-day outlook, which shows a 50-60 percent chance of below-average temperatures for the entire state through Feb. 19 (that forecast is at the top of this post).

The precipitation forecast isn’t as promising for snow lovers and shows that drier-than-average weather is expected for most of the state through the same period, with north Alabama having higher probabilities of drier weather. The exception is extreme south Alabama, which has a 33-40 percent probability of above-average precipitation:

The CPC’s experimental Week 3-4 forecast, which covers the period from Feb. 17 until March 1, also shows a higher probability for below-average temperatures in Alabama:

Hang in there, warm-weather lovers, spring will come: Meteorological spring begins on March 1 and astronomical spring arrives on March 19.