New Orleans, a city known for its warm climate and vibrant culture, rarely experiences snowfall. The idea of snow falling on palm trees and historic streetcars often surprises those unfamiliar with its weather patterns. Snow has occurred, leaving a memorable mark on the city’s history. These events highlight the unique meteorological conditions that occasionally bring winter precipitation to this subtropical region, making any accumulation a truly rare and celebrated sight.
New Orleans’ Rare Snowfall History
New Orleans has experienced snow on several occasions. One of the most significant and recent snowfalls occurred on January 21, 2025, when the city officially recorded 8.0 inches of snow, with nearby Chalmette reporting up to 11.5 inches. This event prompted the first-ever blizzard warnings for parts of coastal Louisiana and Texas, leading to widespread school closures, grounded flights, and closed highways, particularly impacting the Interstate 10 corridor.
The 2025 snowfall surpassed the previous one-day record of 2.7 inches, which fell on December 31, 1963, during a New Year’s Eve event. Historical records also indicate a substantial, though unconfirmed, snowfall of approximately 8.2 inches in February 1895, as part of a “Great Freeze” that swept across the region from Texas to Alabama. Another notable winter event in February 1899 saw New Orleans receive 3.8 inches of snow, accompanied by strong winds and temperatures dropping below 10°F.
More recently, the city experienced a trace amount of snow on December 4, 2009, and between 1 to 2 inches on December 11, 2008. These instances of measurable snow are infrequent, with Louisiana’s average annual snowfall being a mere 0.2 inches, highlighting the exceptional nature of these heavier snow events. The largest monthly snowfall on record for New Orleans was 12.4 inches in January 1948, further emphasizing the historical rarity of significant accumulation.
Why Snow is Seldom Seen in New Orleans
The rarity of snow in New Orleans is primarily due to its geographical location and prevailing meteorological conditions. The city is situated at approximately 30°N latitude, placing it firmly within a humid subtropical climate zone. This southern position ensures that average winter temperatures, particularly during the coldest month of January, consistently remain above the freezing point.
A significant factor influencing New Orleans’ climate is the moderating effect of the warm Gulf of Mexico. The vast body of warm water nearby keeps air temperatures elevated, especially during the winter months, preventing the sustained cold needed for snow formation and accumulation. This maritime influence often tempers the severity of cold fronts that descend from northern latitudes, making prolonged freezing conditions uncommon.
For snow to fall and stick, two conditions must align: temperatures at or below freezing throughout the entire atmospheric column, and sufficient moisture to create precipitation. In New Orleans, while cold air masses do penetrate the region, they are typically not deep enough or prolonged to maintain freezing temperatures consistently from cloud level to the surface. When cold air is present, the necessary atmospheric moisture is often absent, or the air is not cold enough for the water vapor to crystallize into snowflakes that reach the ground without melting. On rare occasions, phenomena like a strong polar vortex can bring exceptionally cold temperatures far south, creating the conditions for snow, but these are infrequent exceptions to the typical winter weather pattern. Winter precipitation in New Orleans is far more commonly observed as rain, or occasionally as sleet or freezing rain, due to this infrequent alignment of cold and moisture.