Mercury to Plunge in Coming Days in Central U.S. This Week

Posted: November 14, 2022 11:51 pm

1,905

Old Man Winter is about ready to rear his ugly head in a big way this week as a large mass of Arctic air sets up across the bulk of the central U.S, bringing the mercury down to the lowest readings of the season yet.

Rapidly Tumbling Temperatures

Forecasters are warning that some areas will see the temperatures fall up to 30 degrees below normal for this time of the year as the cold air plunges southward. There are a number of major metropolitan cities that are in line to see these bitterly cold temperatures, including Minneapolis, Kansas City, Chicago, and Oklahoma City. The readings will be more reminiscent of the middle of January rather than the middle of November.

The cold air is already starting to move into the region with some of these cities seeing their first snowfall of the season on Monday. However, the coldest temperatures will not impact the central U.S. until Thursday or Friday. For example, the high on Friday in Chicago is forecast to top out in the upper 20s. This is quite dramatic when you consider that the average high for the middle of January is in the low 30s.

Many Midwest cities will experience their lowest temperatures readings since last March. This bitter cold will migrate farther to the south as the week progresses, putting cities such as Oklahoma City under the gun for unseasonably cool temperatures to close out the work week. The cold in this part of Oklahoma will happen during the same week that the region saw its first snowfall of the season.

Gusty Winds Bring Temperature Down Further

Gusty winds will accompany the arrival of the cold. Residents will want to dress warmly with gusts approaching up to 35 mph. The winds will also bring the real feel temperature down even further. For instance, although the high temperature in Chicago is expected to hit about 28 degrees on Friday, the real feel reading in Chicago is forecast to be around 10 degrees. It will be equally cold in areas to the north, including Milwaukee and Madison, Wisconsin.

The influx of Arctic air may be enough to set record low temperatures across a number of cities, speaking to the significance of cold weather of this magnitude. Areas that may see record lows fall on Friday and Saturday include many cities in Kansas, Missouri, and Minnesota.

An area of high pressure that is predicted to build across Alaska this week will drive the winds surrounding this atmospheric set-up south from Canada. This air will then eventually filter down into the nation’s heartland.

Cold Air to Push to Northeast by Weekend

While it will be the central U.S. dealing with the cold this week, this weather system will move to the Northeast as the weekend progresses. The cold air in place will also make it more likely that lake-effect snow machine fires up this week across the Great Lakes.

The good news is that the long-range forecast indicates that a shift in the winds by next week will bring in more seasonable weather for the Thanksgiving holiday. This is a welcome forecast for Americans gearing up to hit the road for the extended weekend.

Did you find this content useful? Feel free to bookmark or to post to your timeline for reference later.

Recent Posts