Open Snow’s winter snow forecast points to heavier-than-usual snowfall in California, Oregon, Nevada and Colorado this winter. The map also points to a broader split across the United States, with the northern United States into Canada facing less severe weather even as western states brace for repeated storms.
Open Snow map
The forecast map, published by Open Snow and reported by The Express, places California, Oregon, Nevada and Colorado in the group expected to see more snow than usual. Several Pacific storms could approach the United States from the West Coast, which gives those states a clearer path to repeated snowfall events than areas farther north.
The same forecast also says states like California, Colorado, Nebraska, Nevada, Oregon, Wyoming and Utah are expected to face regular storms that could pose a serious threat to infrastructure and wildlife. For readers in those states, the practical takeaway is to plan for a winter with more frequent storm periods rather than a single isolated event.
NOAA winter pattern
NOAA, in a map distributed through Weather.com, says weather trends in the United States generally reverse during an El Niño event. Under that pattern, the northernmost states face warmer winters than usual while the southernmost states trend much colder.
The source says this El Niño is expected to be the most severe in decades. It describes El Niño as a severe warming of water in the Pacific Ocean near the equator that affects weather across the continent, with the strongest effects felt on the West Coast in the United States.
California and the West Coast
The forecast fits a recent pattern in California, where late winter months this year brought a particularly aggressive series of thunderstorms that left countless homes without power and made travel extremely difficult. The new map extends that concern into the coming winter by pointing to heavier snowfall in the same broad region, along with regular storms that could strain roads, utilities and nearby wildlife habitat.
For people in California, Oregon, Nevada and Colorado, the immediate value of the forecast is simple: expect a winter shaped by repeated storms, not a short burst of snow. The map does not break down when the strongest impacts will arrive, so the practical response is to treat the coming months as a sustained storm period rather than waiting for a single peak date.
