A significant winter storm is set to impact the central U.S. starting Saturday, with forecasts indicating heavy snowfall, ice accumulation, and dangerously low temperatures. The National Weather Service warns that millions in the eastern two-thirds of the country will be affected.
The storm system made landfall along the West Coast on Friday, bringing rain to the Pacific Northwest and snow to the Cascade Mountains. It is expected to develop into a major winter storm spanning the Central Plains to the Mid-Atlantic this weekend into early next week.
By Saturday evening, heavy snow is anticipated across central Kansas to Indiana, particularly along and north of Interstate 70, where accumulations could reach 8 inches (20.3 centimeters) or more. For areas typically experiencing the highest snow totals, this storm could bring the heaviest snowfall in a decade.
As the storm moves into the Ohio Valley, significant travel disruptions are likely, with effects reaching the Mid-Atlantic states by Sunday and Monday. Wind gusts over 35 mph (56 kph) combined with heavy snowfall may create blizzard conditions, especially in Kansas and surrounding areas.
Driving conditions are expected to become perilous, with whiteout conditions posing a heightened risk of drivers becoming stranded. Additionally, hazardous sleet and freezing rain from eastern Kansas through Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, and much of Kentucky and West Virginia are forecasted, raising concerns about power outages from ice accumulation of more than a quarter-inch (0.5 cm).
Meteorologists anticipate that starting Monday, hundreds of millions across the eastern U.S. will experience frigid air and dangerous wind chills. Temperatures could plummet 12 to 25 degrees Fahrenheit (7 to 14 degrees Celsius) below normal, as the polar vortex dips from the high Arctic.
This weather event could lead to the coldest January in the U.S. since 2011, with forecasts suggesting over a week of temperatures significantly below historical averages. The biggest temperature declines are expected over the Ohio Valley, with substantial cold extending to the Gulf Coast.
Even Florida is bracing for a hard freeze. Experts emphasize that brutal wind chills are imminent, reminding the public that while global temperatures are rising, cold snaps remain a possibility.
This extreme weather is possibly linked to a rapidly warming Arctic, highlighting how climate change can exacerbate weather extremes. The polar vortex, which typically remains above the North Pole, occasionally stretches southward, leading to intense cold spells in regions like the U.S., Europe, or Asia. Research suggests an increase in these polar disruptions correlates with the Arctic warming four times faster than other parts of the world.
