Today is winter solstice, which means the longest night of the year and the first day of winter.
We're not so sure if Mother Nature got the memo because the weather outside is anything but frightful. Wet, yes, but certainly not white.
In fact, Christmas is expected to be the warmest Christmas on record, with a temperature 20 degrees above the average for this time of year.
Christmas Eve is projected to be as warm as 72˚F in the city due to an influx of warm-air traveling east from the Gulf of Mexico due to El Niño, which inhibits arctic air from traveling south to the United States.
Christmas Day might cool down a slight bit with projected temperatures of 65˚F.
If these temperatures do develop, we will shatter the records for the hottest recorded Christmas Eve, set in 1996 with a temperature of 63˚F.
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Heck, we might not even fall below freezing until next year. The last time Central Park saw temperatures below 32˚F was March 30 of this year.
New York will be even warmer than cities like Los Angeles (56˚F), Los Vegas (47˚F), and San Diego (57˚F) on Christmas day.
When we're used to temperatures around 40˚F this time of year, it's a bit unsettling to be doing some last minute Christmas shopping without a jacket.
(And P.S., if you want to stay up-to-date with all of the latest weather updates for December 25th, visit the weather geniuses over at Poncho here. They’ll keep you updated, 24/7/365, right on your phone.)
Check out These Photos of Winter Nights in NYC.