Editing White Christmas (weather) (section)

== By country ==
=== Croatia ===
In recent decades, white Christmases in [[Zagreb]] have been observed in 1996, 1998, 1999, 2001 and{{snd}}most recently, as of 2018{{snd}}in 2007.<ref name="net.hr">{{cite web|url=https://net.hr/danas/hrvatska/znamo-u-postotak-evo-kolika-je-vjerojatnost-da-ce-ovaj-bozic-biti-bijeli-po-regijama/|title=ZNAMO U POSTOTAK: Meteorolog izračunao, evo kolika je vjerojatnost da će ovaj Božić biti bijeli – po regijama|work=net.hr|date=17 December 2016|language=hr|access-date=11 May 2020}}</ref><ref name="tportal.hr">{{cite web|url=https://www.tportal.hr/vijesti/clanak/bijelog-bozica-nije-bilo-11-godina-hoce-li-potkraj-ove-godine-konacno-biti-snijega-foto-20181122|title=Bijelog Božića nije bilo 11 godina. Hoće li potkraj ove godine konačno biti snijega?|date=22 November 2018|work=tportal.hr|language=hr|access-date=11 May 2020}}</ref> The probability of white Christmas in Zagreb has been estimated at 25%.<ref name="net.hr" />

In continental Croatia, the estimated probability of white Christmas is highest in [[Gorski Kotar]] and [[Lika]] (50-70%), followed by northwestern Croatia (40-60%) and Slavonia (20-40%).<ref name="net.hr" /> Climate projections suggest white Christmases in Croatia might become rarer in the future.<ref name="tportal.hr" />

=== Ireland ===
In [[Republic of Ireland|Ireland]], the prospect of early winter snow is always remote due to the country's mild and wet climate (snowfall is most common in January and February). Bookmakers offer odds every year for a white Christmas, which is officially lying snow being recorded at 09:00 local time on Christmas Day, and recorded at either [[Dublin Airport]] or [[Cork Airport]] (bets are offered for each airport).{{citation needed|date=December 2023}}

Since 1961, countrywide, snow has ''fallen'' on 17 Christmas Days (1961, 1962, 1964, 1966, 1970, 1980, 1984, 1990, 1993, 1995, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2004, 2009 and 2010), with nine of these having snow ''lying on the ground'' at 09:00 (1964, 1970, 1980, 1993, 1995, 1999, 2004, 2009 and 2010).{{citation needed|date=December 2023}} The maximum amount of lying snow ever recorded on Christmas Day was {{convert|27|cm|abbr=on}} at [[Casement Aerodrome]] in 2010.{{citation needed|date=December 2023}}

At Dublin Airport, there have been 12 Christmas Days with snowfall since 1941 (1950, 1956, 1962, 1964, 1970, 1984, 1990, 1993, 1995, 1999, 2000 and 2004).{{Citation needed|date=December 2023}} The statistical likelihood of snow falling on Christmas Day at Dublin Airport is approximately once every 5.9 years. However, the only Christmas Day at the airport ever to have lying snow at 09:00 was 2010 (although no snow actually fell that day), with {{convert|20|cm|abbr=on}} recorded.<ref>[http://www.met.ie/climate-ireland/SnowfallAnal.pdf Met Éireann – ''Snowfall in Ireland''] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130121071805/http://www.met.ie/climate-ireland/SnowfallAnal.pdf |date=21 January 2013 }}</ref>

=== North America ===

==== Canada ====
In most parts of Canada it is likely to have a white Christmas in most years, except for the coast and southern interior valleys of [[British Columbia]], southern [[Alberta]], southern [[Ontario]], and parts of [[Atlantic Canada]] – in those places Christmas without snow is not uncommon in warmer years, with the British Columbia coast the least likely place to have a white Christmas. The definition of a white Christmas in Canada is {{convert|2|cm|abbr=on}} of snow-cover or more on Christmas morning at 7 am.<ref name=Canadawhitechristmas>{{cite web|title=Historical Christmas snowfall data|url=https://www.ec.gc.ca/meteo-weather/default.asp?lang=En&n=642F4B39-1|website=Environment and Climate Change Canada|publisher=Environment Canada|access-date=26 July 2020|date = 18 December 2019}}</ref> [[Environment Canada]] started to analyze data from 1955 to 2017 for a total of 63 years, It shows the chance of a White Christmas for several Canadian cities.<ref name="Canadawhitechristmas" />

The year 2006 saw some of the warmest weather on record, with such places as [[Quebec City]] experiencing their first green Christmas in recorded history.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/white-christmas-only-in-most-canadians-dreams-1.571862 |title=White Christmas only in most Canadians' dreams |date=21 December 2006 |work=[[CBC News]] |access-date=2012-11-11}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20061224/green_christmas_061224/20061224?hub=TopStories |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081210025215/http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20061224/green_christmas_061224/20061224?hub=TopStories |url-status=dead |archive-date=10 December 2008 |title=Title unknown |work=[[CTV News]] |access-date=2012-11-11 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.on.ec.gc.ca/announce.cfm?ID=768&Lang=e |title=Ontario Weather Review – December 2006 |publisher=[[Environment Canada]] |date=3 January 2007 |access-date=2012-11-11}}</ref> In 2008, Canada experienced the first nationwide white Christmas in 37 years, as a series of pre-Christmas storms hit the nation, including the normally rainy [[British Columbia|BC]] Pacific coast.<ref name=2008Christmas>{{cite news|last1=Osorio|first1=Carlos|title=Canada has white Christmas|url=https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2008/12/25/canada_has_white_christmas.html|website=Toronto Star|date=25 December 2008|access-date=6 January 2016}}</ref> In 2015, the weather was mild in the east, with record-setting warm temperatures in Toronto and southern Ontario which made 2015 a green Christmas while the west saw cold and snowy weather.<ref>[https://www.cbc.ca/amp/1.3380010 It's going to be a green Christmas for many Canadians], [[CBC News]], 24 December 2015</ref>

==== United States ====
[[File:Probability of a white Christmas in the United States 1981-2010.jpg|right|410px|thumb|Probability of a white Christmas in the [[contiguous United States]] from 1981 to 2010]]
In the United States, there is often—but not always—snow on the ground at Christmas in the northern states, except in the [[Pacific Northwest]], with [[Alaska]] the most likely to see snow on the ground at Christmas. In the contiguous United States, the highest probabilities are in the [[Upper Midwest]] and parts of [[northern New England]], along with higher elevations of the Rockies. Some of the least likely white Christmases that have happened include the [[2004 Christmas Eve Snowstorm]], which brought the first white Christmas in 50 years to [[New Orleans]]. The 2004 storm also brought the first measurable snow of any kind since 1895 to [[Brownsville, Texas]], and its [[Twin towns and sister cities|twin city]] of [[Matamoros, Tamaulipas|Matamoros]], [[Mexico]]. The Florida winter storm of 1989 also occurred immediately before Christmas causing a white Christmas for cities like [[Pensacola, Florida|Pensacola]] and [[Jacksonville]]. <!--Hard to believe, but actually, it was Miami too.--> The same storm buried [[Wilmington, North Carolina]] and the rest of southeastern North Carolina under {{convert|15|in|cm|abbr=on|order=flip}} of snow.

In the United States the notion of a white Christmas is often associated in the American popular consciousness with a Christmas celebration that includes traditional observances in the company of friends and family. "[[White Christmas (song)|White Christmas]]" is an [[Irving Berlin]] song reminiscing about an old-fashioned Christmas setting.

According to research by the [[CDIAC]], the United States during the second half of the 20th century experienced declining frequencies of white Christmases, especially in the northeastern region.<ref>{{cite news|last=Dye |first=Lee |url=http://i.abcnews.com/Technology/story?id=99617 |title=Study: White Christmases Have Become Rare |work=[[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]] |date=18 December 2003 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081210062952/http://i.abcnews.com/Technology/story?id=99617 |archive-date=10 December 2008 }}</ref> The National Climatic Data Center based the probability of a white Christmas ({{convert|1|in|cm|abbr=on|disp=or}} of snow on the ground) at selected cities upon the 1981–2010 numbers from stations with at least 25 years of data.<ref name="ncei" />

==== Tables for North America ====

{{Columns-start|num=2}}
{| class="wikitable sortable" valign="top"
|+Canada
|-
! City !! Province !! Probability (%)<ref name="Canadawhitechristmas" />
|-
| [[Brandon, Manitoba|Brandon]] || [[Manitoba]] || 94
|-
| [[Calgary]] || [[Alberta]] || 59
|-
| [[Charlottetown]] || [[Prince Edward Island]] || 78
|-
| [[Edmonton]] || [[Alberta]] || 87
|-
| [[Fredericton]] || [[New Brunswick]] || 76
|-
| [[Happy Valley-Goose Bay|Goose Bay]] || [[Newfoundland and Labrador]] || 98
|-
| [[Grande Prairie]] || [[Alberta]] || 86
|-
| [[Halifax Regional Municipality|Halifax]] || [[Nova Scotia]] || 54
|-
| [[Hamilton, Ontario|Hamilton]] || [[Ontario]] || 62
|-
| [[Iqaluit]] || [[Nunavut]] || 100
|-
| [[Kamloops]] || [[British Columbia]] || 52
|-
| [[Kelowna]] || [[British Columbia]] || 63
|-
| [[Kenora]] || [[Ontario]] || 100
|-
| [[London, Ontario|London]] || [[Ontario]] || 68
|-
| [[Medicine Hat]] || [[Alberta]] || 57
|-
| [[Moncton]] || [[New Brunswick]] || 73
|-
| [[Montreal]] || [[Quebec]] || 76
|-
| [[Ottawa]] || [[Ontario]] || 81
|-
| [[Penticton]] || [[British Columbia]] || 32
|-
| [[Prince George, British Columbia|Prince George]] || [[British Columbia]] || 92
|-
| [[Quebec City]] || [[Quebec]] || 97
|-
| [[Regina, Saskatchewan|Regina]] || [[Saskatchewan]] || 90
|-
| [[Saint John, New Brunswick|Saint John]] || [[New Brunswick]] || 60
|-
| [[Sarnia]] || [[Ontario]] || 59
|-
| [[Saskatoon]] || [[Saskatchewan]] || 94
|-
| [[Stephenville, Newfoundland and Labrador|Stephenville]] || [[Newfoundland and Labrador]] || 81
|-
| [[St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador|St. John's]] || [[Newfoundland and Labrador]] || 65
|-
| [[Greater Sudbury|Sudbury]] || [[Ontario]] || 94
|-
| [[Thunder Bay]] || [[Ontario]] || 97
|-
| [[Timmins]] || [[Ontario]] || 98
|-
| [[Toronto]] || [[Ontario]] || 46
|-
| [[Vancouver]] || [[British Columbia]] || 10
|-
| [[Victoria, British Columbia|Victoria]] || [[British Columbia]] || 11
|-
| [[Whitehorse, Yukon|Whitehorse]] || [[Yukon]] || 100
|-
| [[Wiarton, Ontario|Wiarton]] || [[Ontario]] || 81
|-
| [[Windsor, Ontario|Windsor]] || [[Ontario]] || 46
|-
| [[Winnipeg]] || [[Manitoba]] || 98
|-
| [[Yellowknife, Northwest Territories|Yellowknife]] || [[Northwest Territories]] || 100
|}

{{Column}}
{| class="wikitable sortable" valign="top"
|+United States
|-
! City !! State !! Probability (%)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/sites/default/files/attachments/Christmas_Snow_Statistics_2016.xlsx|title=Christmas snow statistics 2016|publisher=[[National Centers for Environmental Information]]|format=Excel spreadsheet|access-date=26 July 2020}}</ref>
|-
| [[Akron, Ohio|Akron]] || [[Ohio]] || 38
|-
| [[Albuquerque, New Mexico|Albuquerque]] || [[New Mexico]] || 4
|-
| [[Amarillo, Texas|Amarillo]] || [[Texas]] || 11
|-
| [[Anchorage, Alaska|Anchorage]] || [[Alaska]] || 90
|-
| [[Annette Island, Alaska|Annette Island]] || [[Alaska]] || 15
|-
| [[Atlanta]] || [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]] || 1
|-
| [[Boise, Idaho|Boise]] || [[Idaho]] || 28
|-
| [[Boston]] || [[Massachusetts]] || 19
|-
| [[Casper, Wyoming|Casper]] || [[Wyoming]] || 54
|-
| [[Charleston, South Carolina|Charleston]] || [[South Carolina]] || 1
|-
| [[Charleston, West Virginia|Charleston]] || [[West Virginia]] || 22
|-
| [[Charlotte, North Carolina|Charlotte]] || [[North Carolina]] || 2
|-
| [[Chicago]] || [[Illinois]] || 41
|-
| [[Cleveland]] || [[Ohio]] || 43
|-
| [[Concord, New Hampshire|Concord]] || [[New Hampshire]] || 59
|-
| [[Dallas]] || [[Texas]] || 1
|-
| [[Dayton]] || [[Ohio]] || 22
|-
| [[Denver]] || [[Colorado]] || 50
|-
| [[Des Moines, Iowa|Des Moines]] || [[Iowa]] || 45
|-
| [[Detroit]] || [[Michigan]] || 37
|-
| [[Duluth, Minnesota|Duluth]] || [[Minnesota]] || 92
|-
| [[Fairbanks, Alaska|Fairbanks]] || [[Alaska]] || 100
|-
| [[Fargo, North Dakota|Fargo]] || [[North Dakota]] || 78
|-
| [[Hartford, Connecticut|Hartford]] || [[Connecticut]] || 50
|-
| [[Helena, Montana|Helena]] || [[Montana]] || 55
|-
| [[Honolulu, Hawaii|Honolulu]] || [[Hawaii]] || 0
|-
| [[Huntington, West Virginia|Huntington]] || [[West Virginia]] || 15
|-
| [[Indianapolis]] || [[Indiana]] || 26
|-
| [[Lexington, Kentucky|Lexington]] || [[Kentucky]] || 10
|-
| [[Little Rock, Arkansas|Little Rock]] || [[Arkansas]] || 4
|-
| [[Los Angeles]] || [[California]] || 0
|-
| [[Louisville, Kentucky|Louisville]] || [[Kentucky]] || 11
|-
| [[Marquette, Michigan|Marquette]] || [[Michigan]] || 96
|-
| [[Massena (village), New York|Massena]] || [[New York (state)|New York]] || 67
|-
| [[Miami]] || [[Florida]] || 0
|-
| [[Milwaukee]] || [[Wisconsin]] || 47
|-
| [[Minneapolis]] || [[Minnesota]] || 74
|-
| [[Nashville, Tennessee|Nashville]] || [[Tennessee]] || 2
|-
| [[Newark, New Jersey|Newark]] || [[New Jersey]] || 13
|-
| [[New York City]] || [[New York (state)|New York]] || 12
|-
| [[Oklahoma City]] || [[Oklahoma]] || 8
|-
| [[Omaha, Nebraska|Omaha]] || [[Nebraska]] || 36
|-
| [[Philadelphia]] || [[Pennsylvania]] || 8
|-
| [[Phoenix, Arizona|Phoenix]] || [[Arizona]] || 0
|-
| [[Pittsburgh]] || [[Pennsylvania]] || 32
|-
| [[Portland, Maine|Portland]] || [[Maine]] || 48
|-
| [[Portland, Oregon|Portland]] || [[Oregon]] || 4
|-
| [[Providence, Rhode Island|Providence]] || [[Rhode Island]] || 22
|-
| [[Rapid City, South Dakota|Rapid City]] || [[South Dakota]] || 41
|-
| [[Reno, Nevada|Reno]] || [[Nevada]] || 21
|-
| [[Richmond, Virginia|Richmond]] || [[Virginia]] || 6
|-
| [[Salt Lake City]] || [[Utah]] || 52
|-
| [[San Francisco, California|San Francisco]] || [[California]] || 0
|-
| [[Savannah, Georgia|Savannah]] || [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]] || 1
|-
| [[Seattle]] || [[Washington (state)|Washington]] || 5
|-
| [[Spokane, Washington|Spokane]] || [[Washington (state)|Washington]] || 57
|-
| [[St. Louis, Missouri|St. Louis]] || [[Missouri]] || 21
|-
| [[Topeka, Kansas|Topeka]] || [[Kansas]] || 22
|-
| [[Washington, D.C.]] || [[Federal district]] || 8
|-
| [[Wausau, Wisconsin|Wausau]] || [[Wisconsin]] || 91
|-
| [[Wilmington, Delaware|Wilmington]] || [[Delaware]] || 10
|}
{{Columns-end}}

=== Poland ===

The last white Christmas in [[Kraków]] was in 2010. [[Rzeszów]] had a white Christmas in 2016, the first since 2011.<ref>Super Express (17 December 2014), [http://www.se.pl/wiadomosci/polska/boze-narodzenie-2014-pogoda-na-swieta-czekaja-nas-biale-swieta-sprawdz-gdzie-spadnie-snieg_489408.html  Boże Narodzenie 2014. Pogoda na święta. Czekają nas białe święta? Sprawdź, gdzie spadnie śnieg.] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304112117/http://www.se.pl/wiadomosci/polska/boze-narodzenie-2014-pogoda-na-swieta-czekaja-nas-biale-swieta-sprawdz-gdzie-spadnie-snieg_489408.html |date=4 March 2016 }} ZPR Media S.A.: ''[http://www.se.pl/wiadomosci/ciekawostki/pogodynka-pogoda-na-swieta-2014-pogoda-na-boze-narodzenie-2014-spadnie-snieg_488763.html  Pogodynka] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304102501/http://www.se.pl/wiadomosci/ciekawostki/pogodynka-pogoda-na-swieta-2014-pogoda-na-boze-narodzenie-2014-spadnie-snieg_488763.html |date=4 March 2016 }}''.</ref>

=== Romania ===
{{unreferenced section|date=December 2018}}
White Christmases in Romania have been rare in recent times,{{When|date=June 2021}} and this is likely to continue due to the geographic position of Romania and climate change. In recent years,{{When|date=June 2021}} blizzard and snow falls usually start in January and they usually end at the beginning of March. However, at high altitudes, white Christmases are common.
{| class="wikitable sortable"
! Location !! Probability
|-
| [[Bucharest]] || 75%
|-
| [[Iași]] || 80%
|-
| [[Timișoara]] || 70%
|-
| [[Cluj Napoca]] || 85%
|-
| [[Constanţa]] || 65%
|-
| [[Miercurea Ciuc]] || 90%
|-
| [[Craiova]] || 75%
|-
| [[Braşov]] || 85%
|-
| [[Satu Mare]] || 75%
|}

=== United Kingdom ===
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="float:right; margin:0 0.5em 0.5em 1em; font-size:95%;"
! Location !! Probability<ref name="Met Office factsheet">{{cite web |url=http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/corporate/library/factsheets/factsheet05.pdf |title=Fact sheet No. 5 – White Christmases |work=National Meteorological Library |publisher=[[Met Office]] |date=August 2007 |access-date=13 December 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081031042028/http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/corporate/library/factsheets/factsheet05.pdf |archive-date=31 October 2008 }}</ref>
|-
| [[London]] || 9%
|-
| [[Birmingham]] || 13%
|-
| [[Aberporth]] || 8%
|-
| [[Glasgow]] || 11%
|-
| [[Aberdeen]] || 23%
|-
| [[Belfast]] || 14%
|-
| [[Lerwick]] || 38%
|-
| [[Bradford]] || 14%
|-
| [[St Mawgan]] || 10%
|}
In the [[United Kingdom]], white Christmases were more common from the 1550s to the 1850s, during the [[Little Ice Age]]; the last [[frost fair]] on the [[River Thames]], however, was in the winter of 1813–14.<ref name="Met Office factsheet" /> The shift from the Julian to the [[Gregorian calendar]] in 1752 also slightly reduced the chance of a white Christmas, by moving Christmas earlier in the winter.<ref name="Met Office webpage">{{cite web |url=http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/learning/snow/white-christmas |title=Will it be a white Christmas? |publisher=[[Met Office]] |date=10 December 2015 |access-date=28 August 2017 }}</ref>

Before 2006 for betting purposes, a Met Office employee was required to record if any snow fell on the London Weather Centre over the 24 hours of Christmas Day; after 2006 computers were used.<ref>Woodward, Antony; Penn, Robert (2007). The Wrong Kind of Snow: The complete daily companion to the British weather. London: Hodder & Stoughton. p. 25 December {{ISBN|978-0-340-93787-7}}.</ref> An "official" white Christmas is defined by the [[Met Office]] as "one snowflake to be observed falling in the 24 hours of 25 December somewhere in the UK",<ref name="Met Office webpage" /> but formerly the snow had to be observed at the Met Office building in London.<ref name="Met Office webpage" /> By the newer measure, over half of all years have white Christmases, with snow being observed 38 times in the 54 years {{as of|2015|12|10|alt=to 2015.}}<ref name="Met Office webpage" /> A more "traditional" idea of snow-covered ground is less common, however, with only 4 occasions in the 51 years {{as of|2015|12|10|alt=to 2015}} reporting snow on the ground at 9am at more than 40% of weather stations.<ref name="Met Office webpage" />

Although most places in the UK do tend to see some snow in the winter, it generally falls in January and February.  However white Christmases do occur, on average every 6 years.<ref name="Met Office factsheet" />

Christmas 2009 was a white Christmas in some parts of Britain,<ref name="Telegraph 2009-12-25">{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/weather/6884316/Britain-enjoys-first-white-Christmas-for-five-years.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/weather/6884316/Britain-enjoys-first-white-Christmas-for-five-years.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Britain enjoys first white Christmas for five years |work=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |first=Caroline |last=Gammell |date=25 December 2009 |access-date=28 August 2017 }}{{cbignore}}</ref> with thick lying snow which easterly winds had brought over the previous week. Travel over much of Britain was badly affected by ice and snow on roads, and was made more slippery by partial daytime thaw followed by overnight refreezing. It was the first white Christmas anywhere in the United Kingdom since 2004.<ref name="Royal Meteorological Society">{{cite web |url=https://www.rmets.org/white-christmas-2009 |title=White Christmas in 2009? |publisher=[[Royal Meteorological Society]] |date=14 December 2009 |access-date=28 August 2017 }}</ref> There was another white Christmas in 2010,<ref>{{Cite news | url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/weather/8225058/Boxing-Day-snow-warning-as-parts-of-Britain-see-a-white-Christmas.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/weather/8225058/Boxing-Day-snow-warning-as-parts-of-Britain-see-a-white-Christmas.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title = Boxing Day snow warning as parts of Britain see a white Christmas|date = 25 December 2010|last1 = Lefort|first1 = Rebecca}}{{cbignore}}</ref> it was also the coldest Christmas Day ever recorded in the United Kingdom.<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://blog.metoffice.gov.uk/2012/12/25/top-ten-coldest-christmas-days/ | title=Top ten: Coldest Christmas days| date=25 December 2012}}</ref> In 2014, parts of the Northern Isles had a white Christmas and again in 2017, Northern England and Southern Scotland had a white Christmas.<ref>{{Cite news | url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-42479735 |title = White Christmas for some areas of UK|publisher = BBC News|date = 26 December 2017}}</ref>