Dreaming of a white Christmas? Guide your sleigh to the north or west
If you're dreaming of a white Christmas, guide your sleigh north or west.
“The greatest chance of a white Christmas will be across the Midwest, Great Lakes, northern New England and the Rockies,” AccuWeather forecaster Paul Pastelok said.
A winter storm is forecast to bring snow from the Rockies and Plains to the Midwest and northern Great Lakes on Wednesday night through Friday, AccuWeather said. Cities such as Denver and Minneapolis should see several inches of snow, which will stick around for Christmas because of a cold blast that's forecast to follow the snow.
Yet another storm could form and spread a wintry mix of snow and ice on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day as far south as Texas and Oklahoma to the Great Lakes and interior Northeast.
And yes, even Hawaii is getting in on the white Christmas craze: The highest peaks of the two volcanoes on the Big Island — Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea — will see up to two feet of snow this week, some of which could stick around for Christmas.
The National Weather Service defines a white Christmas as having one inch of snow on the ground on the morning of Dec. 25. It need not snow on Christmas Day.
More: Pre-Christmas travel weather forecast: Soggy South, snowy Northwest and Midwest
The USA's fascination with a white Christmas dates back to 1942, when Bing Crosby first crooned the wistful song in the film Holiday Inn.
Written by Irving Berlin, the song's lyrics bring out a romanticized image of Christmases past, "just like the ones I used to know." A second movie — White Christmas, also with Crosby — came out in 1954.
Despite Crosby's wishes, only 25% to 30% of the 48 contiguous states are typically snow-covered by Christmas, according to AccuWeather.
As of Tuesday, snow covered about 26% of the lower 48 states, NOAA said.
Looking for a surefire way to get a white Christmas? Head to Fairbanks, Alaska, which has seen snow on the ground every Christmas since weather record keeping began, according to data from the National Centers for Environmental Information.
Historically, much of northern Minnesota and Wisconsin, most of Michigan's Upper Peninsula and a large portion of the Western mountain areas have a 90% or better chance of a white Christmas.
Based on historical averages, some of the biggest cities with the best probability for a white Christmas, according to AccuWeather, include Minneapolis; Green Bay, Wis., Buffalo; and Burlington, Vt.