Undated (KROC-AM News) - Minnesotans are being told to expect a snowier than average winter.

The National Weather Service has issued its early Winter Weather Outlook and it shows much of the northern United States will likely see higher than average precipitation from December through February. The prediction for Minnesota puts the chances of a snowier than average winter at between 50 and 60-percent.

The Winter Weather Outlook, which will be updated in late November, is forecasting warmer than normal temperatures across much of the United States with the upper Midwest being the exception. The National Weather Service is indicating there is an even chance of warmer or colder than average temperatures in Minnesota and surrounding states.

The outlook says the coming three month winter period is not expected to be influenced by either the El Niño or El Niño effect, which means the inevitable incursions of severe heard arctic weather into this region will be the result of short-term climate patterns that cannot be incorporated into long-range forecasts.

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