The National Weather Service issued lake effect snow warnings across much of northeast Ohio Saturday as cold air streams across the Great Lakes. Similar conditions are forecast for parts of the upper Midwest and the Northeast. (Dec. 10) AP
Snow is forecast to spread across the nation's northern tier this weekend and as far east as Maine by Monday, setting the stage for another blast of bitterly cold air next week that could send temperatures plunging as far south as Atlanta.
As serious winter weather settles in, the anticipation of harsh cold marks the reappearance of the Polar Vortex, like the one that infamously slammed the U.S. in January 2014.
The Polar Vortex is a large area of cold air high up in the atmosphere that normally lives over the poles but can dip down into North America from time to time thanks to a meandering jet stream.
Ahead of the Vortex, winter storm watches and winter weather advisories were in effect Saturday for parts of eastern South Dakota into southern Minnesota, northern Iowa, southern Wisconsin, Lower Michigan, northern Illinois and northern Indiana and northwestern Ohio.
USA TODAY
Polar Vortex is back and it's going to get ugly
"The exact track and intensity of the storm will determine where the heaviest band of snow occurs," according to AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Alex Sosnowski.
About 3-6 inches of snow will fall in the swath from Rochester, Minnesota, to Milwaukee, Chicago, Detroit and Cleveland, with local amounts of 8-12 inches possible, Accuweather predicted.
The Chicago area, already hit by temperatures around the freezing mark, was expecting as much as a foot of snow and could see temps fall into the teens by midweek.
An Arctic cold front already sent daytimes highs barely above zero for much of this week in the mid-Plains.
9694 1 LINKEDIN 70 COMMENTMORE