The warm and relatively snowless winter we’ve had so far may come as a shock to some Iowans, but the season has been on track with climatologists’ predictions.

State Climatologist Justin Glisan says this winter is trending with what the climate bureau predicted with above-average temperatures and precipitation, “That being said if you look at December in terms of precipitation for the state we were about three-quarters of an inch above normal precipitation and were five degrees above normal so what that translates into is mostly liquid precipitation as opposed to snow. If it would have been seasonally temperature-wise we would have had anywhere from 10-15 inches of snow possibly.”

December marked the 10th-wettest and the 22nd-warmest observed month for the state since 1895. Glisan predicts continued above-average temperatures and precipitation for mid-to-late January, but with a downturn into colder temperatures and an unseasonably dry February for Iowa. Listen to Raccoon Valley Radio for weather updates.