Will Boise have a white Christmas? Here’s what the Old Farmer’s Almanac predicts

If you’re hoping for a white Christmas in Idaho to brighten 2020, you may be in luck.

The Old Farmer’s Almanac has used a long-range weather forecast to predict what weather Dec. 25, 2020, will bring, and it looks like snow is expected for Christmas in much of the U.S.

The Intermountain region — which includes all of Idaho, much of Utah and Nevada, and parts of Wyoming, Montana, Washington, Arizona and Oregon — is expected to get snow from Dec. 24 to Dec. 31, according to The Old Farmer’s Almanac.

“Expect snow flurries in the days leading up to Christmas, with temperatures trending milder (by winter standards, at least) around the holiday,” The Old Farmer’s Almanac reported.

The snow could turn to rain and mild temperatures as the new year begins, however.

The Old Farmer’s Almanac developed a tool that allows people to search by ZIP code to see if snow is expected come Christmas. In Boise, for example, the tool says “a White Christmas is likely in your area.”

The Old Farmer’s Almanac is North America’s “oldest continuously published periodical,” according to its website.

The Old Farmer’s Almanac said it makes its forecast using a “secret formula” created in 1792 by Robert B. Thomas, the Almanac’s founder. It includes solar science (the study of sunspots), climatology and meteorology, the almanac said.

“These rules have been altered slightly and turned into a formula that is both mathematical and astronomical,” the publication said. “The formula takes into consideration things like sunspot activity, tidal action of the Moon, the position of the planets, and a variety of other factors.”

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story incorrectly linked to the Farmer’s Almanac, which is not affiliated with the Old Farmer’s Almanac.

This story was originally published December 14, 2020 at 1:44 PM.