Following one of the coldest meteorological US winter’s in history, March is getting off to an extreme start with both brutal cold and a big winter storm.
The air mass now over the Great Lakes is incredibly one of the coldest of the winter and we’re now into meteorological spring!
Check out the actual highs from yesterday across the US.
Source: weather.com
Yes, the ‘high’ yesterday in Glasgow, MT was -20!
Here were the lows this morning.
Source: weather.com
The thermometer plummeted to -44 at Embarrass, Minn this morning. -15 in Minneapolis.
Billings, MT witnessed their coldest March morning on record with a low of -21.
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Here’s the current temperatures across the country right now. That’s an incredible air mass over the heart of the nation for early March right now… Takes a LOT from an air mass to hold temperatures in single digits mid afternoon in North Texas at this time of the year. However, it’s not unheard of!
Source: weather.com
How far below normal?
Source: weather.com
The arctic front is currently separating two extreme air masses over Texas right now. We’re currently looking at an 81 degree spread with 88 in Edinburg while just 7 with snow flying in Dumas.
Here are the forecasted highs this afternoon according to the NWS.
Source: NWS
When looking back over the past 3 months (Dec, January and February), this winter has gone down as a top 10 coldest throughout the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes. Many different cold records varying from thousands of daily record cold highs/lows to record number of days below freezing or below 0.
This was the 3rd coldest winter in Chicago history while 4th coldest in St Cloud, MN, 9th coldest in Minneapolis and a tie for COLDEST ON RECORD in Eau Claire, WI.
Source: NWS
As of today, Minneapolis stands at 49 days below zero which 5th place in most sub zero days in a season.
Graphic courtesy of Jonathan Yuhas
Minneapolis should at least tie 4th place with 51 days, set back in the brutal winter of 78-79. This winter could be the one which produces most sub zero days in a winter, in over 100 years!
What’s amazing is that there are places such as the UP of Michigan, where this winter exceeds levels seen back in the benchmark winter of ’78-79. According to the NWS, this was thee coldest winter on record for the UP of Michigan.
Marquette witnessed a record breaking 75 straight days at or below freezing. A stretch from Dec 5 through Feb 18.
Source: NWS
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Winter 2013-14 is also one of the snowiest as well as coldest. Here’s a graphic showing just how snowy this season has been over the Midwest and East.
Source: AccuWeather
BACK TO TODAY AND TOMORROW’S STORM SETUP!
Foot Of Snow Possible From Kentucky To New Jersey
Here’s a look at the latest 850 temp & surface/precip map off the ECMWF model through the next 48 hrs. Note how the precip really intensifies along the boundary separating very warm air over the Southeast with very cold over the Great Lakes.
850 temps show the big temperature contrast between the Upper Midwest and Southeast this afternoon. This helps intensify the storm and heavy precip along the boundary.
Source: AccuWeather Pro
Surface
Source: AccuWeather Pro
Source: AccuWeather Pro
Source: AccuWeather Pro
ECMWF snow through next 48 hrs
Source: AccuWeather Pro
GFS
Source: AccuWeather Pro
The axis of heaviest (8-14″) snows remain on that more southerly track extending central Kentucky to DC. The metro DC area looks to be in the bullseye for heaviest snow.
Check out these chart produced by the NWS.
Source: NWS
Source: NWS
ALL-TIME March Lows Could Be Threatened!
Once this storm exits, look for the extreme cold to shift east with a challenge of the coldest temps seen at any point this winter in the East over the fresh snowpack.
ECMWF Tue AM temps
Source: AccuWeather Pro
Cold looks set to remain dominant through March. No end in sight to this never ending, brutal winter!
CFSv2 temp anomalies for next 4 weeks.
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