At a Glance

At least light snowfall has been observed in parts of every U.S. state this season.This was achieved following Winter Storm Benji's snowfall in the Gulf Coast and mid-Atlantic last week.

The winter solstice ismore than a week away, but parts of all 50 states have already seen at least some snowfall this season.

December began with a paltry amount of snow across the Lower 48 following alack of storminess during thesecond half of November. The weather pattern changed a few days into the month, which favored increased snow chances across the central and eastern states.

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Seasonal snowfall accumulation to date through Dec. 11, 2017.

(NOAA)

Last week's clinched the feat of all 50 states observing snow thisseason when it blanketed theGulf Coast region, including the Florida Panhandle. A snow season includes the period from fall through winter and spring.

Hawaii has also seen snow this season, specifically on the . Snow was recorded there in late November.

An odd twist is that many southern locations have seen more snow to this point in the season than areas farther north. Notice how only light accumulations have been observed through Dec. 11 in parts of Kansas, Missouri, Iowa, Illinois and Indiana when compared to the Deep South.

While there is no readily available information on the earliest all 50 states have seen snowfall in a season,it's asafe bet to say this is extremely unusual forearly December.

Snow is more common in the South deeper into the winter, makingJanuary or February a more likely target date for when all 50 states record snow. Still,snowfall is rare in Florida, so it doesn't happen every year.

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An even tougher feat to accomplish is snow on the ground in all 50 states at the same time.

This,when each of the Lower 48 states had snow cover, including a small portion of northwestern Florida. Hawaii's volcanic summits barely had any snowfall, but afew patches were observed on Mauna Kea that day.

is a somewhat easier accomplishment, last occurring earlier this year, on Jan. 8.