Coldest April Fool's Day in 20 Years: Chicago, Duluth

By Kristina Pydynowski, Senior Meteorologist

March 29,2013; 10:07PM,EDT

The arctic invasion headed to the Midwest early next week will lead to the coldest April Fool's Day in years, even decades for some.
This Easter weekend will start with high temperatures near or above normal across the Midwest, but will end with arctic air plunging into the Upper Midwest on Sunday.
A noticeably colder Monday then awaits the rest of the Midwest as the cold blast continues its journey to the south and east, eventually reaching the East and Gulf coasts by Wednesday (but not including the Florida Peninsula).
Highs on Monday throughout the Midwest will be held to the 30s north of the Ohio River with temperatures failing to crack the 30-degree mark from northern and eastern North Dakota to northern parts of Michigan.

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Brisk winds will create even colder AccuWeather.com RealFeel® temperatures.
For a region where highs typically warm into the lower 40s near the Canadian border to the lower 60s along the Ohio River on April 1, Monday's forecast highs will translate to the Midwest's coldest April Fool's Day in years.
The coldest April Fool's Day since 1993 is shaping up for Chicago, Duluth, Green Bay and Des Moines. For Detroit, Monday will be the coldest April 1 since 2001.
Temperatures in Indianapolis, Ind., should only top out at 38 degrees on Monday, making this April Fool's Day the city's coldest since record-keeping began at the Indianapolis International Airport in 1948. April 1, 1962, and its high of 39 degrees currently holds the distinction for Indianapolis' coldest April Fool's Day.
April 1, 1996, was the last time temperatures were held to the 20s on April Fool's Day in International Falls, Minn., a feat that is expected to be repeated on Monday.

Monday's unusual cold comes one year after the Midwest experienced a mild to unusually warm April Fool's Day in 2012.
Temperatures soared into the 80s last April Fool's Day in Des Moines, St. Louis and Kansas City, where highs in the 30s are expected this Monday.
Slightly more than 30 degrees will separate high temperatures from April 1, 2012 (67 degrees) and Monday's forecast high (35 degrees) in Minneapolis, Minn. For Chicago and Detroit, the difference in April 1 high temperatures from last year to this year ranges from 15 to 20 degrees.
Another difference between the April Fool's Days of this year and 2012 is the fact that snow should once again make an appearance downwind of the Great Lakes and from Denver to St. Louis to Pittsburgh on Monday.