Scientists Disagree With Almanac’s Brutal Winter Forecast

The Old Farmer's Almanac is predicting another long, cold, depressing winter.  But "not so fast," say climate experts.  That's right, there may be some hope for people in the Northeast, who have been in panic mode since the 2015 Almanac came out last week.

CBS News interviewed Anthony Artusa, a meteorologist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) Climate Prediction Center in College Park, Maryland.  According to him, there is nothing to indicate another brutal winter like last year.  He was quoted by CBS as saying:

We don't see anything offhand that would suggest it would be a really brutal winter

The climate expert said that science looks for indications of an El Niño or La Niña effect, but none of the conditions that would create an extreme weather pattern like this are currently in place.

So who to believe?  Well, predictions are just that: predictions, says Atrusa. He notes that The Almanac does a great job or promoting when they get a prediction right, but don't usually cop to being wrong.  Also, the vagueness of most of those folksy weather prognostications makes it difficult to tell how accurate they truly are.  Bottom line: don't freak out about the winter yet, he says.  There's absolutely no way of telling what may or may not happen.