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what happened to all the snow

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presented by science at nasa

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winter seems to have been on hold this

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year in some parts of the united states

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snowfall has been scarce in places that

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were overwhelmed by the white stuff by

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the same time last year

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mammoth mountain in california is a

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prime example

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the mammoth ski resort got more than 200

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inches of snow last december says nasa

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climatologist bill patzert of the jet

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propulsion laboratory

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this december they got less than 10

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inches

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it's not only skiers who are put out

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sled dogs are troubled too

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my huskies just don't understand what's

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going on says tony phillips a nasa

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writer who dog sleds in california's

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rugged sierra nevada

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last year we had more than six feet of

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snow to work with this year it's just

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bare dirt

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temperatures have flip-flopped too

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there were 583 heat records broken in

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the first five days of january in the

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u.s

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it was 86 degrees in los angeles on

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january 4th says patzert

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everyone thinks it's july

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in fact it's warmer today in la than it

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was on july 4th

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and it's been in the 60s and 70s even in

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the dakotas lately

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similar reports are coming from across

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the united states

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what's going on

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patzert identifies two culprits la nina

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and the arctic oscillation

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first of all he explains we are

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experiencing a la nina pattern of sea

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surface temperatures in the pacific

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ocean

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this pushes the jet stream and the cold

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arctic air northward

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on top of that this year's arctic

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oscillation has been stronger

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the arctic oscillation is a see-sawing

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pressure difference between the arctic

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and lower latitudes

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where the pressure difference is high a

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whirlpool of air forms around the north

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pole

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when the whirlpool motion is weaker like

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last year

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cold air escapes from the polar regions

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and heads southward to the us

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this year the whirlpool has been more

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forceful corralling the cold air and

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keeping it closer to the pole that has

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reinforced la nina's impact

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while the corralling action of the

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arctic oscillation has kept snow away

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from parts of the contiguous united

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states

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it has brought extra snow to places

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inside the whirlpool

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snowy storm tracks are pounding alaska

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says patzert

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this is the flip side of the absence of

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winter in the lower 48.

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cordova a small coastal town about 150

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miles east of anchorage has been

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especially hard hit more than 18 feet of

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snow has fallen so far this winter

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snow dumps are full

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roads have turned into one-lane snow

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canyons and national guardsmen have been

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sent in to help residents dig out

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the sled dogs of the lower 48 don't need

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that much white stuff but they'd like

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enough to cover the ground at least

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be patient don't sell that new dog sled

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yet advises patsert

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we haven't gotten to the heart of winter

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there's plenty of time for the arctic

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oscillation to weaken and bring us some

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snow

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after all he points out it ain't over

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until the siberian huskies sing