ITV Channel Weather Watch: Will we get a white Christmas this December?

Last year, Credit: From top left going clockwise: Justin Le Poidevin, Tina & Gary Rihoy, Heidi Lilli, and Daniel Rive

It's beginning to look a lot like... December!

Christmas is just around the corner and winter is well on its way.

Festive greetings cards show snow-capped villages and icy wonderlands. But in reality, how common is a white Christmas in the Channel Islands?

Read on to find the answer to all of your wintery weather musings.

December weather trends

December is characterised by shorter days and often wet and windy weather.

It is also one of the chillier months of the year.

Shorter daylight hours and more cloud cover mean less sunshine - just over two hours a day on average in December - giving us colder days and chillier nights.

Last year in Guernsey, nine days saw no sunshine at all.

December can therefore feel noticeably colder than November or October.

However, the sea is still relatively mild at this time of year, which mitigates temperature cooling. This means December is rarely as cold as January or February.

A white Christmas is far from the norm in the Channel Islands. Credit: Allen Debs

A white Christmas is rare, but a wet one is more common.

On average, December sees around 4mm of rain daily, making it the rainiest month of the year.

Blustery winds and storms can persist into December.

Low-pressure systems run over us more frequently as the jet stream sits further south in the winter, bringing us more wind, rain, and clouds.

Are you brave enough to brave a Christmas Day dip? Here is all you need to know. Credit: Jersey Met

Average temperatures in December :

Average rainfall in December:

Average sunshine in November:

When does winter start?

December marks the start of the winter months, though the precise date depends on your definition.

For meteorologists, winter begins on 1 December.

The date coincides with the start of the month to make it easier to compare weather and climate data across months and years.

Astronomical winter, however, begins on 21 December - at the point when the Sun is exactly overhead the Tropic of Capricorn.

This is the date of the winter solstice, which is the shortest day of the year. On this day, the sun will rise at around 8am and set shortly after 4pm.

Local lingo

Did you know the wintery weather we experience in the Channel Islands has inspired several Jèrriais and Guernésiais weather phrases?

Test them out on your friends and family the next time you feel brisk wind or cold conditions!

This translates to "cold as snow". Credit: Justin Le Poidevin
"Watch out it's going to rain monkeys" - a Guernésiais wet weather phrase. Credit: Daniel Rive
"It's blow the skin off a moose!" - you would say this on a windy day. Credit: Mark Tabel
Another blustery weather phrase - "Hold on fast to your hat because it's stormy". Credit: Dennis Robinson

Dates for the diary

  • 1 December - meteorological winter begins

  • 5, 12 and 19 December - late-night shopping in Jersey & Guernsey

  • 21 December - the start of astronomical winter and the winter solstice

  • 25 December - Christmas Day

  • 26 December - Boxing Day swim

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