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I don't know about you, but we've been having colder than normal winters the past 5 or so years.
Really? It's only really 3 of the last 5 winters that have been 'cold' & even then only one was actually colder than average overall, with the other two just having cold snaps. Last winter wasn't cold, infact it was mild apart from about a week in February...
Probably not for a few hundred years at minimum. The trend for most of the Northern Hemisphere is the other way. You'll more likely to see warmer winters rather than cooler ones. In fact, the last time North America and western Europe was warmer than present was during a period from about the 1050 through the 1270's. Even then, the global warming signal presented wasn't quite as strong then as today because the southern hemisphere was going through it's own mini-ice age at that time and that's not now happening. This trend is a strong one and there is no sign that natural processes will reverse it any time soon.
Why we're doing this - during period of time in our planet's history where our orbital configuration and axial tilt would suggest we should be rapidly cooling off is a matter of contentious debate.
I would not rule out "a foot of snow in Houston" even today. In 2005 nearby Austin got about 8 inches on December 25th for it's first-ever white Christmas - so snow where you live is not impossible. But it ain't something that would be worthwhile holding your breath for, either. I believe the orbital geometry I mentioned above will eventually put the brakes on global warming and we will cool off, but it may take several centuries or even millenia to bring that about.
Well, I'm a native Houstonian, so of course I realize that it can and does snow here. What I'm really looking for is some record-breaking bitter cold weather to happen here.
Asking for a foot of snow at 30 degrees North is a tall order. You should be thankful you see any snow at all. To put things in some perspective, Houston is at the same latitude as Cairo, Egypt or Kuwait City. Ever seen pictures of the pyramids covered with snow? Exactly.
Also didn't you have a lot of snow and cold 2 winters ago?
I had around a foot of snow in the 2010-2011 winter. Tomorrow's forecast is 76 degrees, about 25 degrees above average. No cold in sight. I'm so mad. Ever since record keeping began, my city has seen at least a trace of snow each winter, and I wouldn't be surprised if this year was the first with no snow at all... ugh!
I'd be very happy if Vancouver never received another snowflake in the city itself... might happen in a century. I'd be very happy to live in Houston where it's warm to hot most of the time
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