Get ready to bundle up, Midwest. Here’s what the Farmers’ Almanac predicts for winter

As if you’d expect anything less from 2020, the Farmers’ Almanac is predicting a very cold winter for the Midwest.

The more than 200-year-old publication released its 2020-2021 Winter Outlook this week, which predicts winter weather conditions for regions throughout the country.

The Farmers’ Almanac has dubbed this year’s cold season the “Winter of the Great Divide.”

So what does that mean for the central U.S.?

States in the plains, near the Great Lakes and near the Rockies should all expect a cold winter, the almanac said, with states including Missouri, Kansas and western Illinois all expected to see above average snowfall.

Those in states just south, such as Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas are predicted to experience a temperamental winter, with intervals of mild weather mixed with spikes of cold and snowy conditions, according to the almanac.

Tennessee, the lower Ohio River valleys and portions of New England have been dubbed the “winter wild card” and are expected to see intense winter weather systems, dropping wintry mixes, ice and snow all throughout the season.

The almanac also predicts that a dramatic blizzard will hit the eastern seaboard between Feb. 12 and 15, dropping up to two feet of snow.

The Farmers’ Almanac is an annual publication that makes long-range weather forecasts for the U.S. and Canada.

It relies on a mysterious formula that considers “sunspot activity, tidal action of the moon, the position of the planets, and a variety of other factors,” according to the almanac.

The almanac says its predictions are about 80% accurate, but a study by a professor at the University of Illinois found that only 51.9% of its monthly precipitation forecasts and 50.7% of its monthly temperature forecasts were accurate, The News-Gazette reported. Or in other words: not much better than random chance.

Only time will tell if this year’s prediction comes to fruition.

This story was originally published August 25, 2020 at 10:35 AM with the headline "Get ready to bundle up, Midwest. Here’s what the Farmers’ Almanac predicts for winter."