Snowy winter ahead? Heres the very early N.J. forecast.

Hurricane season is still upon us and will be sticking around for the next two months. But some long-range weather forecasters are already looking ahead to the winter season.

AccuWeather has issued its early winter forecast for 2022-2023, giving some hints about whether us folks in the New Jersey region will need to tune up our snowblowers and stock up on rock salt or whether we will have a low-snow winter like last year.

Last winter turned out to be a very rare one in the Garden State, with more snow falling in South Jersey than in North Jersey or Central Jersey, regions that are typically colder and snowier. In addition, very little snow fell anywhere in the state in February and March.

Will we see a repeat of last winter? Long-range forecasters from AccuWeather say they anticipating another winter season with below-average snowfall in the New Jersey region, but the overall seasonal snow totals should be a bit higher than last year.

In New York City, Philadelphia and the New Jersey region, forecasters from AccuWeather are predicting below-average snow accumulations during the winter of 2022-2023, but slightly more snow than last winter.AccuWeather

AccuWeather has the same general prediction for the New York City area and the Philadelphia area.

New York City typically gets 29.8 inches of snow each year, but got only 17.9 inches last winter. AccuWeather is calling for 18 to 23 inches in the Big Apple this winter.

Philadelphia usually gets 23.1 inches of snow each year, but only 12.9 inches fell in the city last winter. AccuWeather is predicting 14 to 20 inches of snow this winter.

On the meteorological calendar, winter starts Dec. 1 and runs through the end of February, because December, January and February on average have the coldest temperatures and the most snow.

On the astronomical calendar, based on the Earths rotation and sun angle, the upcoming winter season starts Dec. 21, 2022 and ends March 20, 2023.

In New York City, Philadelphia and the New Jersey region, forecasters from AccuWeather are predicting below-average snow accumulations during the winter of 2022-2023, but slightly more snow than last winter.AccuWeather Big blasts of cold air

AccuWeather is predicting a mild start to the upcoming winter, but says residents across the Northeast and Midwest will experience a few winter previews in November and December as waves of cold air dive down from Canada.

However, the biggest blasts of cold air will hold off until later in the winter, AccuWeather notes.

In case youre wondering about other winter forecasts, the Farmers Almanac released its super-early winter predictions way back in early August. The publication (which says it uses a secret formula to make long-range forecasts) is calling for a stormy winter season in the eastern half of the U.S. and very frigid temperatures in the North-Central, Great Lakes and Northeast regions.Current weather radar

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Len Melisurgo may be reached at LMelisurgo@njadvancemedia.com.