Lack of January Snow Is a First in 75 Years

This month is set to become the first January in 75 years that New York City has been without any measurable snowfall, according to the National Weather Service.

Less than one-tenth of an inch has fallen in a month that usually produces more than eight inches of snow in the city, according to the National Weather Service.

The phenomenon can be traced to the lack of offshore storms, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, Joseph Pollina, said.

"We've had a number of systems move up the East Coast in not a favorable track for snow," Mr. Pollina said. "Most of the storms have been inland, west of New York City. We haven't really had too much cold air, but when we do, it hasn't coincided with precipitation."

A climate scientist with the federal government's Goddard Institute for Space Studies, Gavin Schmidt, said the lack of snowfall this month cannot be attributed to global warming.

"Any one season, there's a huge amount of variability," Mr. Schmidt said. "You're talking about one month alone. These things can be unusual, but you can't take them in isolation as proof of global warming."

The National Weather Service monitoring station located at the Central Park Zoo has recorded only two other Januaries since records began in 1869 where no measurable amount of snow has fallen on the city — 1890 and 1933. Since the start of winter, 2.9 inches of snow have fallen, a low that was met or exceeded in 13 previous recorded years.

Local businesses that thrive on white winters are feeling the crunch. The owner of Garber Hardware, Nathaniel Garber, said he has sold only four bags this month of salt, an essential commodity for homeowners, shopkeepers, and apartment building superintendents with snow or ice to melt on the curb.