Arctic air brings freezing temperatures to US this weekend
- A disrupted polar vortex is driving below-average temperatures across much of the U.S. during the holiday weekend, impacting over 170 million people as Arctic air spreads south.
- Central and Eastern U.S. states will be affected as the polar vortex becomes active.
- Typically, the polar vortex remains strong over the Arctic, containing the coldest air, but disruptions allow this cold to spill into lower latitudes.
- In this instance, the vortex has stretched rather than collapsed, resulting in longer-lasting cold spells instead of brief outbreaks of extreme cold.
- Forecasters anticipate this pattern may last for 10-14 days or more, potentially extending into early February.