Cold and snow heading for eastern states – see forecast

On By Littum

Upper line

The first winter storm of the new year is set to form this weekend, according to the National Weather Service, producing heavy snow, ice and potentially record low temperatures across the Midwest, South and East.

Key facts

The storm, which the NWS said will produce “Arctic eruptions“, is expected to first affect the Central Plains on Saturday, cover the Ohio and Tennessee Valleys on Sunday and the Mid-Atlantic early next week.

Somewhere between 6 and 12 inches of snow is expected to fall downwind of the Great Lakes, according to NWSwhich also predicts similar snowfall accumulations for the Central Appalachians and snow showers over the northern/central Rockies.

Significant sleet and freezing rain could potentially affect the Ozarks and extend into the Tennessee and lower Ohio valleys, as well as the southern Appalachians, the NWS said in a post Thursday.

“Frigid arctic air” is expected to blow through the central and eastern United States through the weekend as high pressure builds over the Great Plains.

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Which states will be most affected by the winter storm?

While the eastern half of the United States is expected to be engulfed by cold temperatures next week the NWS has predicted high chances of at least moderate snow impacts in northern Missouri, central Illinois, central Indiana, northeastern Virginia, and central Maryland. The NWS also predicts the greatest potential for significant icing in central Kansas, southern Missouri, southern Illinois, southern Indiana, most of Kentucky, southern West Virginia and western Virginia.

Surprising facts

The cold temperatures accompanying the storm could produce the coldest January in the United States since 2011, according to AccuWeather expert Paul Pastelok, who noted that the storm’s Arctic outbreak will “involve many days and not just be a quick one-to-three-day event.”

Key background

NOAA’s winter view issued in October predicted fair to probable chances of above-average seasonal temperatures this winter in the southwestern, southern, and eastern United States. It also predicted wetter than average conditions for the northern half of the continental United States and drier than average conditions from much of the Southwest to Southeast, the Gulf Coast, and the lower Mid-Atlantic regions. The forecasts follow warmest autumn experienced in the United States in NOAA’s 130-year climate record, where the average fall temperature reached 57.6 degrees Fahrenheit, which was 4.1 degrees above average.

Further reading

US Winter Outlook: Warmer and drier south, wetter north (NOAA)

The autumn of 2024 was the country’s warmest ever (NOAA)