Today the 2011 edition of the Farmers’ Almanac will go on sales nationwide. The Almanac, which some people believe does a remarkable job at predicting weather, months in advance, has been in publication since 1818. The Almanac Publishing Company says that their weather forecasts are about 80 to 85 percent accurate. The formula for determining weather, so far in advance, includes secretive variables pertaining to mathematics, astronomy, tidal actions, and more.

The 2011 Farmers’ Almanac predicts a calmer and milder winter overall for the United States. The mid-Atlantic region of the US, who received record snowfall amounts and frigid temperatures last winter, will have much less snow, and warmer temperatures according to the Almanac. Residents in the Midwest and near the Great Lakes, however, will receive above average snowfall through much of the year, while New England may experience below average temperatures.

Despite the track record of the Almanac, most scientists feel it’s a waste of time reading. When asked about the latest publication, Ed O’Lenic from NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center stated, “In science you have to have an open mind. Someday, someone could conceivably find some scintilla of evidence that it’s useful,” O’Lenic, chief of the operations branch, said of the almanac’s methodology. “For the time being, we have to stick with what produces results for us.”

Last year’s publication did fairly well predicting the harsh mid-Atlantic winter we had. We will have to wait and see how the 2011 edition does.

You can purchase the 2011 Farmers’ Almanac at Amazon