The holiday forecast for Alberta is out and the weather looks merry | Daily Hive

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Alberta has seen some intense weather recently, and while the holiday season won’t bring any dramatic warm-ups, the forecast suggests that conditions will be calm across the province.

Daily Hive spoke to Terri Lang, a meteorologist with Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC), to get the lowdown on what Albertans can expect in terms of weather for the holidays this year.

“Expect to be bundling up, but it’s not outrageously cold,” Lang said. “It doesn’t look like any big systems are moving through, giving lots of snow or anything like that.”

Lang says that temperatures are going to be a little below average, but trending closer to the seasonal average, giving us a break from the harsh winter weather that’s been rolling through the province.

“It’s trying to warm up, like average temperatures for this time of year… I don’t see any Chinooks coming or anything like that.”

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Lang says it might feel a little colder than usual in the south because no Chinook patterns are showing, which typically bring a little relief from the winter chill.

“Expect to be in a sort of colder air. It’s not that extreme cold or anything, but I think, especially in Southern Alberta, they like their Chinook conditions, but we’re not seeing any of those patterns setting up.”

Central Alberta is expected to be colder than the south, which is typical for the region, but still nothing super intense, Lang explained.

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“As we know, it tends to be colder up there, but again, not really deep arctic air, just sort of typical cold-ish air for this time of year. Average highs for Edmonton for this time of year are -6°C and overnight lows around -15°C.”

If you’re planning on travelling for the holidays, Lang emphazied on the importance of being prepared before hitting the roads, regardless of what the forecast says.

“Keeping in mind travel conditions, always being prepared when you’re out,” she said. ”Even if there aren’t any weather systems coming through, even if you’re driving somewhere, make sure there’s an emergency kit in the car, because it’s going to be cold outside and you don’t want anything tragic to happen.”

With the holidays just around the corner, we dove into how often Calgary and Edmonton have seen white Christmases, and if you’re looking to have some festive fun, you can check out 27 of the best winter and Christmas things to do in Alberta this year.

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