Coldest Temperatures of the Season for the Northeast; Arctic Blasts Will Reach Florida

Linda Lam
Published: February 13,2015



 
We are tracking two surges of arctic air that will keep the central and eastern United States shivering through the weekend.
The first surge of cold air is currently spreading from the Midwest to the East Coast. Another blast of frigid air will be pulled southward by a low-pressure system that is expected to bring significant snow and wind to the Northeast this weekend.
(MORE: Weekend Snowstorm Forecast)
Many locations have a chance to see their coldest weather of the winter. In fact, some could see the lowest temperatures in years.

First Bitter Blast: Through Friday

The first arctic plunge began to ooze into the northern Plains on Wednesday, where daytime highs did not rise out of the single digits in parts of North Dakota and northern Minnesota. In fact, Garrison, North Dakota's high on Wednesday only reached 9 degrees, and gusty northwesterly winds made the temperature feel as cold as 20 degrees below zero.
On Thursday morning, parts of the northern Plains and Upper Midwest saw subzero low temperatures. International Falls, Minnesota recorded a low temperature of 28 degrees below zero, which equals the coldest low temperature so far this winter in the city. Minneapolis dipped to three degrees below zero with a wind chill near 20 degrees below zero.
The cold continued in the Midwest and Great Lakes on Thursday, when thermometers failed to top 17 degrees in Chicago. This is a full 17 degrees below the average high for February 12.
The bitterly cold temperatures have spread south and east on Friday. Watertown, New York dropped to 32 degrees below zero on Friday morning, setting a daily record low.
Highs will be at least 10 degrees below average almost everywhere east of the Mississippi River, with highs 20 to 30 degrees below average over upstate New York and adjacent parts of neighboring states. High temperatures will only reach the single digits and teens from the northern and eastern Great Lakes region to New England and areas in between, including much of northern Pennsylvania and northern New Jersey.
If you are hoping to escape the cold by heading to Florida on vacation this holiday weekend, unfortunately you will find chilly low temperatures, but at least it will be warmer than the Northeast. On Friday morning even the Deep South felt the chill, as readings sank into the low 30s as far south as the Florida Panhandle and northern parts of the Florida Peninsula.
Although most of the Southeast will see a temperature rebound Saturday, Florida may still be feeling the effects of this first blast as lows could reach the mid 30s as far south as the Everglades. Rural areas outside of Orlando may see some frost, while freeze watches and hard freeze watches are posted for northern portions of the Florida Peninsula.

Second Bitter Blast: This Weekend

Another low-pressure system is expected to dive from the Great Lakes to the Northeast Saturday, not only bringing the risk of more snow and wind but also dragging a reinforcing shot of Canadian cold southward.
Sunday could be the coldest day of this extended cold snap for many in the Northeast. January 2004 is the last time New York City failed to climb above 15 degrees for a high, and New York hasn't registered a high between 10 and 14 degrees since January 1994. Depending on how fast temperatures fall Saturday night (highs are measured midnight to midnight), New York could have its coldest day in over two decades. Howling northwest winds will only magnify the misery with subzero wind chills.
Buffalo, New York could see a high of zero degrees on Sunday. The city has not had a high of zero degrees or lower since January 1994.
Parts of the Catskills and Adirondacks in upstate New York may stay below zero all day Sunday.
In general, highs 20 to 30 degrees below average are expected Sunday across virtually all of the Northeast, as far west as Michigan and Ohio, and as far south as the Carolinas and Tennessee.
Low temperatures will not be particularly enjoyable, either.
By Sunday morning, widespread subzero lows are expected for much of the Upper Midwest, Great Lakes and parts of upstate New York and northern New England. Detroit and Green Bay, Wisconsin could be close to their coldest readings so far this winter if they dip to 2 degrees below zero and 12 degrees below zero, respectively.
Monday morning now looks to be the coldest morning for the Northeast Corridor, with lows in the single digits from Philadelphia to Boston and teens through the Mid-Atlantic Piedmont and coastal plain (including Washington, D.C.). At this time, temperatures Monday morning are forecast to be the coldest so far this winter in New York City and Philadelphia.
Daily record lows will be threatened both of those mornings in parts of the Northeast, Southeast and Great Lakes as this reinforcing cold blast plunges southward. Below are a few of the locations where our current forecast low is close to the daily record shown in parenthesis.
- Sunday: Grand Rapids, Michigan (-7) | Madison, Wisconsin (-14) | Cleveland (-4)
- Monday: Baltimore (5) | New York City (1) | Toledo, Ohio (-8) | Syracuse, New York (-10)
Wind chills will also be a concern in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic. Wind chill watches have been posted for much of the Northeast this weekend. Wind chill values, or what the temperatures feels like, will be well below zero at times in the Northeast, and that could make frostbite a concern. Farther south, wind chills could flirt with zero around the nation's capital.
Signs are beginning to point to yet another blast of bitterly cold air for the Midwest and Northeast later next week.
(MAPS: 10-Day Forecast Highs/Lows)
Meteorologists Jonathan Erdman and Chris Dolce contributed to this report.
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