Someone must have let Ole Man Winter out of quarantine, but the chill today is nothing unusual for the time of year. Meteorologist Dennis Todey, director of the U-S-D-A’s Midwest Climate Hub in Ames, says the real arctic chill is far to the north and it’s likely not going to be wafting into Iowa anytime soon.

While it’s still too early to predict whether Iowa will have a White Christmas, Todey says there will likely be changes in the weather by the end of the month.

He says while there has been very little precipitation for the past several weeks, that won’t be a major concern until early spring. December and January are typically Iowa’s driest months of the year.