A wave of winter weather is set to impact millions of Americans next week, bringing plummeting temperatures and a chance of snow as a low pressure system moves in from Canada. This beginning to a La Niña winter is anticipated to bring colder temperatures and increased occurrences of Nor’easters along the Eastern Seaboard, following a season already characterized by several coastal storms.
According to the FOX Forecast Center, the cold air will push southward into the eastern United States starting this Sunday, with a significant chill expected to last throughout the week. By Sunday night, approximately 170 million Americans across 35 states could experience sub-freezing temperatures. Residents in the Dakotas, Nebraska, Iowa, and Minnesota may face wind chill readings in the single digits come Sunday morning.
On Monday, cities such as Minneapolis, St. Louis, Detroit, and Pittsburgh are projected to wake up to temperatures in the 20s, whereas Atlanta, Dallas, and Nashville could see morning temperatures in the 30s. Highs throughout the day are expected to struggle to escape the 30s, while blustery winds gusting between 20-35 mph will exacerbate the chill, particularly in the interior Northeast, where wind chills may dip to the teens.
The Southeast is bracing for record low temperatures by Tuesday morning, with forecasts suggesting some areas may approach, tie, or even break century-old low temperature records. Meanwhile, the arrival of cold air over warmer waters of the Great Lakes will pave the way for the first lake-effect snow of the season. Areas in northern Indiana, southern Michigan, northern Ohio, and northwestern Pennsylvania, including parts of Chicago, are expected to be affected.
As forecasts indicate, the eastern shores of Lake Michigan, Lake Erie, and Lake Ontario are likely candidates for snowfall, with accumulations potentially reaching between 5-8 inches and locally higher amounts of up to 8-12 inches in some areas of western Michigan and western New York by Tuesday.
Though this initial cold spell and wintry precipitation offer a brisk start to winter, temperatures are expected to return to more typical averages by mid-week, suggesting this taste of winter will be brief. The evolving weather patterns highlight the dynamic nature of La Niña, setting the stage for what may be an intriguing winter season ahead.