Arctic Blast Hits New England

Millions of residents in the US Northeast are prepping for dangerously low temperatures today as a blast of arctic air moves into the region from the Upper Midwest. Wind chills are projected to drop as low as 30 degrees below zero in many locations, with some areas of northern Maine potentially reaching negative 60 degrees. Single-digit air temperatures are expected as far south as Pennsylvania.

The culprit is a shift in the polar vortex—a mass of low-pressure, cold air that rotates above the Earth's polar regions. A weakened polar jet stream can draw arctic air temporarily southward (see the science). Mild weather is expected to return by Monday; see detailed forecasts for regions across the US here (w/clickable map).

In the south, the death toll from an ice storm that rolled across the region rose to 10, while 400,000 customers in Texas remained without power yesterday.