Data shows white Christmases are becoming more rare in New Brunswick

Is it beginning to feel like your dreams of a white Christmas are perennially dashed?

It's not just a feeling. New Brunswick is experiencing more green Christmases, according to data collected by Environment Canada.

And things in Saint John are bleakest when it comes to white Christmases over the last 65 years.

Since 1987, Saint John has had 19 green Christmas that's in 33 years. In the 33 years before that from 1955 to 1986 there were only nine, said Spencer Clements, an operational meteorologist with Environment Canada.

Clements explained that the department's definition of a white Christmas is a minimum of 2 centimetresof snow on the ground at 7 a.m. on Christmas morning.

While Saint John is the least likely New Brunswick city to see a white Christmas, Fredericton saw the biggest drop in white Christmases.

From 1955 to 1986, Fredericton only had three green Christmases, but since 1987, they've had 15, said Clements.

Moncton went from seven green Christmases to 10 in the same time period.

This year, the province has received more rain than snow in December and all three cities were in the mid-teens above zero on Christmas Day.

"It's been extremely snowless in December for many years, except for the North," said Environment Canada meteorologist Jill Mapea.

While it's too late for Christmas, Clements said Fredericton is expected to see roughly 10 to 15 cm of snow on Wednesday night through Thursday.

He said Saint John and Moncton will have to wait a little longer for the white stuff since the next system is only expected to bring rain to those cities.

The "next good chance for snow for Saint John and Moncton is Saturday," said Clements.

In its white Christmas report, Environment Canada calculated the probability of a white Christmas for cities across Canada based on historical data.

Between 1963 and 1984, Saint John's chance of a white Christmas was estimated to be 68 per cent. Since then, the chance has dropped to 41 per cent. For Fredericton, the chance dropped from 86 to 45 per cent, and for Moncton, from 82 to 68.

Only two Canadian cities saw their chances increase.St. John's and Victoria are bothnow more likely to experience a white Christmas than they were before 1985.

Only three cities have remained at a 100 per cent chance of a white Christmas Whitehorse, Yellowknife and Iqaluit.