WASHINGTON — A white Christmas — with snow-covered grass, trees and roofs. It's a magical wish that boys girls and some adults dream about every year. In D.C. this year, the odds are not in our favor, but it doesn't mean it can't happen.
For it to be a white Christmas, it doesn't have to snow on Christmas Day itself. It can snow a day or a few days beforehand, as long as it's cold enough to limit the snow melting altogether. Unfortunately, the ingredients will not come together for us in D.C. region this year.
Temperatures in the 50s and dry skies should preclude any risk of bad travel, but that will also dash the hopes of kids across the DMV of seeing white flakes this Christmas.
What Are The Odds?
According to the official definition of "white Christmas" from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), a Christmas can only be considered white if there is one inch of snow on the ground by 7 a.m. on Dec. 25. On average, only about 10% of Christmases in D.C. have achieved that.
Historically, snow chances for the holiday in our area are actually are pretty slim. Looking at data going back to 1884, snow has only fallen on Christmas Day in D.C. nine times.
The last year with snow on the ground in D.C. was 14 years ago in 2009. We had seven inches on the ground leftover from our blizzard on Dec. 18 and 19, in 2009. Even more rare in recent years, it hasn't snowed on Christmas Day in D.C. since 2002, when National recorded .2".
Meanwhile, in 2020, although it may not have been a "white Christmas," we did receive a few sprinkles changing over to scattered flurries on Christmas Day. But there was just a trace of snow and no real visible accumulation.
There have been 19 occasions when snow was on the ground in D.C. for Christmas since 1888. In 1962, D.C. saw the most snowfall on Dec. 25 with 5.4 inches.
Perhaps more clearer in memory than the white Christmas back in 2009, might be the warm Christmas of 2015, when temperatures hit nearly 70°.