The mention of Christmas often invokes visions of snow cover and cold weather. However, Christmas weather in south central Nebraska certainly doesn't always ring true to this picture. Just in the last 30 years, Christmas high temperatures in Grand Island have ranged from 11° to 62°! This story features a wealth of Christmas Day weather and climate information focused specifically on Grand Island, where December weather records date back 130 years to 1895 (official weather data recorded at Central Nebraska Regional Airport since 1938).

Temperatures: According to the entire period of record, the warmest Christmas on record was 62° on three occasions (1999, 1963, 1922) and the coldest low temperature was -16° in both 1983/1924. Only 22-of-127 Christmases on record (17%) have featured high temperatures of 50° or warmer, but four of these have occurred in the last 14 years (including both 2021/2020). On the opposite end of the temperature spectrum, only 10-of-129 Christmases on record (8%) have featured sub-zero low temperatures (most recently three years ago in 2022). Christmas 1983 truly stood out on the bitterly cold side of things, with a high temperature of only 7° and a bone-chilling low of -16°. Despite how cold Christmas 1983 was, that day actually broke an unprecedented streak of seven consecutive days of BELOW ZERO TEMPS that lasted from Dec. 18-24, 1983!

Precipitation/Snowfall: As for liquid precipitation equivalent (which includes any melted snowfall), only 16-of-129 Christmases (12%) have featured measurable precipitation. In terms of active, memorable Christmas weather, there have been a few notable ones just in the last 16 years (and not just snowfall!). Two years ago, Christmas 2023 featured a moderately-impactful winter storm with at least a few hours of near-blizzard conditions. Going a bit farther back, we are now 16 years removed from the major Christmas blizzard of 2009! This memorable storm dumped 7.8" of wind-whipped snow on Grand Island during the calendar day, and 9.1" of storm-total snow between the 24-26th. CLICK HERE FOR A RECAP OF THE 2009 CHRISTMAS BLIZZARD. Nine years ago in 2016, Christmas featured extremely active weather, but it had nothing to do with snow...as instead, an unusually mild and moist airmass fueled a line of strong thunderstorms during the afternoon hours. Then just a few hours later during the evening, an unusually strong and long-lasting high wind event occurred, featuring at least 2-3 hours of sustained westerly winds frequently 30-50 MPH and a peak gust of 75 MPH at Central Nebraska Regional Airport! These winds caused considerable, mainly minor damage not only within Grand Island but also across much of south central Nebraska. CLICK HERE FOR A RECAP OF THE "CRAZY" CHRISTMAS WEATHER OF 2016
 

What Is The Historical Probability Of A White Christmas?

Based On 30-Year Normals (1991-2020) -- Click HERE for Interactive Map

Grand Island White Christmas History (1955-2024)

 **2024 Christmas Recap for Grand Island (chilly, foggy and overall "dreary" weather)

Christmas 2024 was a rather cloudy/foggy day...serving as a rather "dreary" weather backdrop despite the joyous holiday. Due to the extensive clouds/fog, there was a fairly small range between the morning low temperature (23°) and the high temperature (32°)...which actually occurred in the evening. With officially zero morning snow cover/snow depth, Grand Island ended a brief, two-year streak of having a "White Christmas". 

Christmas Normals/Extremes for Grand Island (1895-2024):

The 10 Most Recent Christmases in Grand Island (2015-2024):