A new winter forecast map has put California, Oregon, Nevada and Colorado in the path of heavier-than-usual snowfall this season, with weather offices warning that a growing El Niño could steer more storms toward the West Coast. The same maps point to calmer severe weather farther north, creating a sharp split in what parts of the continent may face when the cold arrives.
Donald Trump is also moving through a different kind of weather map this week, pausing planned taxes on $20 billion worth of Canadian imports for three days just before they were set to take effect. But for residents watching the forecast, the more immediate question is whether the winter ahead will bring a burst of storms strong enough to disrupt travel, strain infrastructure and deepen the risks for wildlife across the western states named in the map.
The forecast, published by Open Snow, comes as the National Weather Service and other weather prediction offices have released their own maps showing where extreme weather could hit in the coming months. The latest outlook centers on an El Niño pattern, the warming of water in the Pacific Ocean near the equator that can flip winter conditions across the continent. During those events, the northernmost states often turn milder than usual, while the southernmost states can trend colder.
That broad pattern is what gives the new map its force. It does not spread the risk evenly. Instead, it points to regular storms and heavier snow in California, Oregon, Nevada, Colorado, Nebraska, Wyoming and Utah, while also suggesting the northern United States into Canada could see less severe weather. Several Pacific storms may push in from the West Coast at the same time, a setup that could leave some places dealing with harsher conditions even as others on the map are spared.
Forecasters have also tied the outlook to an El Niño that is expected to be the most severe in decades, a claim that matters because stronger events tend to reshape storm tracks more sharply. In practical terms, that means the same season could bring treacherous thunderstorms, high winds and heavy snow in one stretch of the continent while leaving another with a quieter winter. That kind of split is why weather maps are being watched so closely now, especially by people in mountain and coastal areas where winter storms are already a normal threat. A separate winter outlook focused on the Southern Hemisphere shows how quickly these patterns can swing from one region to another, adding to the attention on this year’s forecast.
For California, the warning carries particular weight after late winter storms in the prior year left countless homes without power and made travel extremely difficult. This time, the question is not whether storms will come, but how many will reach the western states named in the map and how severe they will be once they do. The forecast does not pin down the exact start date for the strongest systems, and that missing timing detail is what will determine how much of winter is defined by heavy snow rather than just the possibility of it.
