BUFFALO, N.Y. — The first official month of Meteorological Winter will rank as one of the warmest on record for the city of Buffalo. That shouldn't come as a surprise as the month as seen overwhelmingly above averages temperatures.
As of December 30, the average temperature for December of 2021 is 38.1 degrees, 6.6 degrees above the climatological monthly average for December. This is combining all the highs and lows of the month and taking the average of them, which the average high temperature has been 44.2 degrees (+6.9 degrees) and average low of 31.9 degrees (+6.2 degrees).
This ranks December of 2021 as the second warmest for the month on record for Buffalo, behind 2015 as the warmest with an average temperature of 41.2 degrees. With above average temperatures expected for the rest of the week, this month will likely approach first place but hold as a close second.
As for snow, its presence has been lacking, and greatly missed by many. As of December 30, only 5.7 inches of snow had fallen in Buffalo when climatology shows that usually 24.3 inches would have accumulated by that. That's 18.6 inches below the monthly average, and one of the least snowy too, but out of the top 10.
Storm Team 2 predicted that this December may have above average temperatures and below average snowfall during the Storm Team 2 Winter Weather Outlook. This was based on looking at previous winters with a second La Niña in a row, as this is the second winter season in a row with a La Niña present in the Equatorial Pacific. So if this record continues, January could bring more seasonal conditions for the month, meaning an average monthly temperature near 30 degrees and 25 inches of snow total for the month.
All observations for the city of Buffalo are observed and kept at the National Weather Service Office in Buffalo at the Buffalo Airport in Cheektowaga.