Weather Prediction: Farmer's Almanac

I have always been curious about the accuracy of the Farmer's Almanac. It was first published in 1792 and is still going strong today.

What is the Farmer's Almanac?

The centerpiece of the Old Farmer's Almanac is its winter weather forecast, which naturally has sparked a backlash from professional meteorologists. But faulty information or inaccurate findings haven't kept the almanac from finding an audience of some 10 million monthly visitors to its website. Along with the weather forecast, the almanac throws in gardening tips ("Planting by the Moon"), a recipe for curried apricot and peppercorn chutney plus such minutiae as how deep a moose can dive.

Despite claims that the 2015 Old Farmer's Almanac's winter weather predictions were 96.3 percent accurate, many meteorologists and outlets say any forecast should be taken with a grain of salt. Many meteorologists liken the almanac's forecast to getting your palm read from a psychic.

Here's what the almanac is saying about the upcoming winter. Virtually no part of the U.S. is safe from the cold weather, and residents of the East Coast, the Pacific Northwest and the Southeast should be prepared to bundle up. There's also going to be plenty of snow for the Northeast, the Pacific Northwest and the Ohio Valley. If you're looking for some type of escape, Texas, Florida, Idaho, Utah, Oregon and Oklahoma will experience mild and dry weather. Louisiana, Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi will experience normal and dry weather, according to the almanac.