Following the wide variety of temperatures seen across the nation during the Thanksgiving weekend, Salomon Smith Barney Meteorologist Jon Davis said the temperature pattern during the rest of November and the first few days of December is expected to be “normal,” which he allowed is something that much of the U.S. has not experienced this month.

According to Davis, the extended Thanksgiving weekend (Nov. 22-25) saw temperatures in the Great Lakes and Northern Plains approximately 10-15 degrees (F) above normal. Temps during this four day period were also above normal in the eastern United States, but only about 2-8 degrees above normal for this time. Davis’ most recent Energy Weather — Natural Gas and Heating Oil update released Monday showed that the coolest area during the Holiday weekend was the western 1/3 of the nation where temps were near to slightly below normal.

Reflecting on energy, Davis said heating demands during the past four days were “unseasonably low” in the Mid-continent, “below normal” from New England to the Southeast, and “near to slightly above normal” in the Far West.

“It is a regional thing across the country,” Davis told NGI. Adding that it would eventually get colder, he said that it has already gotten colder in the plains over the last couple of days, and the same will happen in the middle of the country over the next two-three days, but the eastern coast will still remain on the warm side.

“From a population weighted basis, the big eastern cities from Boston down to DC will pretty much stay on the warm side all week long, whereas the middle of the country, in places like Texas and the western Great Lakes, will turn very cold over the next few days,” he said. Davis added that East Coast temps over the next week-to-10 days will stay above normal, but beyond that it currently looks as if it will get colder.

In other words, Davis said the jet stream pattern will be set up in a very typical configuration for late November/early December. In his most recent update, he said there will be periodic surges of cold air moving into the United States from Canada, accompanied by winter storms in varying areas of the country. However, he pointed out that there are no signs of any record-breaking cold air masses moving into the nation. As it is typical for early November/late December, Davis said there will be periodic surges of cold air that will penetrate as far south as the Gulf Coast.

Because the initial delivery of these surges of cold air will be more so into the middle of the country — such as the Rockies and the Plains — this will be the area with the highest heating demands, Davis added. Natural gas demand in the Plains will be above normal during the next 10 days, while below normal heating oil demand is expected in the warmer than normal Northeast over the same time frame.

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