Frigid Start to February for the Midwest, Northeast

February 1,2015; 10:37PM,EST

 

 

Winter is in full force as back-to-back storms impact a wide swath of the country spanning the Midwest and Northeast.
With an average of 10 inches of snow on the ground across the Midwest and Northeast, and temperatures slightly below normal, the month of January came to a snowy and chilly end.

As February begins, the chilliness will continue as a pattern of Arctic surges will set up to invade portions of the Midwest and Northeast through the week and into the upcoming weekend.
The fresh snowpack from the January snowstorms and calmer winds on Tuesday will prevent temperatures from rising much throughout the day.
The first wave of frigid February air will blast in setting the stage for daytime highs to struggle to reach the 20-degree mark in the Midwest, with teens and even the single digits in store for most of New England.
AccuWeather.com RealFeel® Temperatures will be kept in the teens and single digits from Boston to New York City and westward through Detroit and Chicago on Tuesday.

A one-two punch of arctic air will continue to encroach into the Midwest during the the middle of the week, and despite increasing sunshine, temperatures will fail to break freezing, with AccuWeather.com RealFeel® Temperatures in Minneapolis and Chicago dropping to 2 below and 17 below zero respectfully.
Winter's frosty grip will grab up more territory on Thursday, as almost all of the Midwest and Northeast alike will have highs in the teens.
Overnight lows on Thursday will be subzero in Detroit, Erie, and Buffalo, New York, and much of northern New England will nosedive toward 20 degrees below zero.
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Unfortunately for those hoping for spring will have to wait as the cold will persist through Friday for much of the Northeast and Midwest.
However, temperatures will begin to moderate in the Midwest on Friday. Minneapolis will flirt with the freezing mark for the first time in February, and Chicago will be creeping back into the lower 20s by week's end.
Temperatures closer to average for the beginning of February will inch towards the Northeast by the start of the weekend.
By AccuWeather.com Meteorologist Chyna Glenn