Despite Hot Dry Summer, Winter May Not be Warm and Dry

I don't write about the weather unless something is wrong with it. Today is no different.

Meteorologists from the National Weather Service have told the Gazette that our miserably hot and incredibly dry summer was not necessarily an upfront payment for a warm, dry winter.

In other words, what happens in summer doesn't necessarily predict what will happen later.

"Just because we have six months of dry conditions doesn’t mean the next six will be dry or wet," said Kevin Deitsch, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Des Moines.

But what about this winter's weather?

The National Weather Service's three month-prediction calls for a little above normal temperatures and normal moisture.

For reference, last year's average winter temperature was 28.2 degrees.

That was the ninth warmest winter in 139 years, so it's likely to be much colder this year.