Following a year of severe drought across the United States, the precipitation from winter 2013 may not be enough to eradicate dry conditions and return the water supply to normal levels.

The snow cover compared to last year on this date for the contiguous U.S., is significantly wider: approximately 65 percent versus last year’s 25 percent.

The highest percentage of snow coverage in any month last year just barely reached 48 percent.

But despite the seemingly wide coverage right now and talk of more snow to come, the U.S., will not be quick to recover.

‘Our current snow cover is not anything unusual. It was just way less than normal last winter,’ said AccuWeather.com Expert Senior Meteorologist Jack Boston.

‘Snow cover will probably hold for much of this month but we expect it to turn drier and milder again over western U.S. to the central and northern Plains in February, which should cause the overall snow coverage to decrease.’

Above average snowfall would be necessary to bounce back this winter, with more than 42 percent of the U.S., still undergoing severe to exceptional drought, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.

But as the AccuWeather.com Winter Forecast predicts, not a lot of additional snow is expected from the […]