Following an Arctic cold front that swept across the West Coast and Great Plains in October, rounds of cold air blasts are expected to blow eastward across the central U.S., the upper Midwest and the Great Lakes and over to the eastern coast, bringing record-low temperatures through mid-November.
The first round of cold air will predominately affect the Northern Plains, upper Midwest and Great Lakes beginning on Monday, according to the National Weather Service. Temperatures in those areas are expected to be 5 to 15 degrees lower than average for this time of the year. In places like Billings, Montana, and Bismarck, North Dakota, temperatures are expected to be as low as 32 degrees and will continue to drop to the mid-20s by Wednesday. Temperatures during the night will drop exponentially, dipping into the low 30s and 20s overnight, while areas along the U.S.-Canada border could see temperatures as 18 degrees.
By Wednesday, the second wave of cold air is expected to wash over the northern Rockies and Northern Plains. The blast will then spread farther east, covering the rest of the Plains and the Midwest before reaching the East Coast and the South by Friday.
This cold snap will bring even colder temperatures, some 10 to 25 degrees below average. Daytime highs will reach the 20s in the northern Rockies and Northern Plains on Wednesday, while the Midwest and Great Lakes region will see temperatures in the 20s by Thursday. Meanwhile, the Northeast will be hit with temperatures barely breaking 30 degrees.
While warmer than the Northeast, the mid-Atlantic will still be affected, with temperatures reaching the low 40s by the weekend. As the cold front makes it way east, New York’s 51 degrees on Wednesday will drop to 40 degrees by Friday, while places like Boston will struggle to surpass 30 degrees by the end of the week.
Although snow isn’t expected, meteorologists believe some cities from the Ohio Valley to the Northeast may see their first light snow if moisture from a southern storm system clashes with cold air in the north.
The cold temperatures will even cool down the South, from the Texas Panhandle over to Florida. Florida will still see temperatures as high as 60 degrees, but that is still relatively cooler than normal climate for the state in November.
The frigid temperatures are predicted to last for some time, with a 50 percent chance of temperatures being below average in the Midwest and Northeast until November 17, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Climate Prediction Center.
The weather pattern mimics that of November 2018, which was one of the 10 coldest Novembers ever recorded for cities in Illinois, Missouri, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Mississippi. In addition, numerous cities along the East Coast saw temperatures below average that month.
