Chances of a white Christmas looking low for Saskatchewan

Christmas is just two weeks away, but if you look outside of your window right now, chances are it looks nothing like winter.

Very little snow has fallen in most parts of Saskatchewan so far this season, and very little snow is included in the long-range forecast before Christmas arrives.

“There aren’t any weather systems at this time that look like they’re going to bring any substantial snow,” said Environment Canada meteorologist Terri Lang.

“Even if we get a weak system, it might bring a couple centimetres of snow, and that could easily disappear with mild temperatures and windy conditions.”

That means much of the province is on pace to see a brown Christmas this year.

While it might feel like a foreign concept, Lang said it’s not unheard of in Saskatchewan.

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“When we talk about a brown Christmas, that’s when there’s less than two centimetres of snow on the ground,” Lang stated. “The last time this happened (in Saskatoon) was 2018.”

The last time Regina saw a brown Christmas was 2020, Lang added.

Lang said she isn’t surprised by the warm weather, and suggested the El Niño phenomenon, which brings warm Pacific air to the region, is playing a role.

“It is consistent with El Niño patterns,” Lang explained.

“I grew up in the prairies, and we’ve certainly seen them before. After the last three winters we had which were La Niña winters – they tend to bring us colder than average and snowier than average – after switching over to the El Niño, it’s not terribly surprising.”

David Phillips, Environment Canada’s senior climatologist, said 2023 could bring one of the brownest Christmas holidays the province has ever had.

“I look at the map of snow cover on the ground and there’s no part of the province (covered in snow),” Phillips said.

“It’s probably going to be the greenest – or brownest – Christmas. If this pattern stays, we’ll never have seen a so-non-white Christmas as we have seen this year!”

Phillips said those who really want a white Christmas this year in Saskatchewan might need to travel north to places like Meadow Lake or Uranium City.

The climatologist said snow is an important part of the holidays for many people.

“It’s like toys, tinsel and turkey – you want that snow that falls,” he said.

“Last year, you had the white Christmas and that perfect Christmas Day – and I’m not talking about the in-laws leaving early – but it’s about that snow in the air and snow in the ground. That’s what we could sort of hope for, and if the province collectively does it, then maybe nature will pay attention.”

In Saskatoon, Phillips said that by this point in the season, there would typically have been at least seven days with temperatures below -20 C, but so far in 2023 that hasn’t happened even once.