It’s an impressive cold snap when we’re talking about the potential for winter weather reaching Florida.
A bitter blast of Arctic air surging south out of Canada will barrel straight into the southern United States, sending dangerously cold temperatures as far south as the Gulf of Mexico by early next week.
Southern US Polar Vortex
DON’T MISS: Polar vortex set to invade Canada and the U.S. with dangerous cold
Brutal cold reaches deep into the south
We’re in the beginning stages of one of the most notable cold outbreaks we’ve seen in the past decade. A lobe of the polar vortex reaching out of the Arctic will allow frigid air to spill toward southern latitudes, reaching as far south as the tropics over the coming days.
Monday, Jan. 20, could be one of the United States’ coldest days in years. It’ll be so cold that the presidential inauguration in Washington, D.C., will be held indoors for the first time in 40 years.
Southern US Temperature Anomaly
Most communities east of the Rockies will remain below freezing through the day. The worst of the cold will push toward the East Coast into the middle of the week.
Subfreezing temperatures will push all the way to the Gulf Coast at the heart of the cold outbreak on Monday and Tuesday.
Daytime high temperatures in Atlanta, Ga., will remain below freezing on Monday, Jan. 20, with highs struggling to crack the freezing mark on Tuesday and Wednesday. Atlanta’s normal high temperature for the middle of January is about 12°C.
Florida Forecast Monday
We’ll even see relatively chilly temperatures reach into Florida.
Freezing temperatures are expected across portions of northern Florida on Monday night and Tuesday night. Orlando’s high temperature on Monday will only reach 10°C—a far cry from the city’s normal of about 22°C this time of year.
Winter storm potential grows with the cold
Forecasters are also monitoring the potential for a winter storm in the Deep South to accompany the burst of cold temperatures.
An active storm track across the northern Gulf of Mexico may spin up a disturbance over Texas late Monday that tracks along the northern Gulf Coast through the day Tuesday.
Southern Winter Storm Potential
Models are hinting at the possibility for snow, freezing rain, and ice pellets to fall from central Texas across the northern Gulf Coast into portions of northern Florida.
While the setup looks favourable for snow and ice, it’s extremely hard for wintry precipitation to fall in this part of the world.
Houston, Tex., last saw measurable snow during a historic cold snap back in Feb. 2021. Mobile, Ala., and Tallahassee, Fla., last recorded a light dusting of snow in January 2018.
Deep South Ice Storm January 2014
Mobile experienced a disruptive ice storm in Jan. 2014. Tallahassee hasn’t seen 2 cm of snow since Dec. 1989—a cold outbreak during which it was colder in Miami than Calgary.
Even a small amount of wintry precipitation along or near the Gulf Coast would be a high-impact event. Most municipalities in this region have little to no equipment to handle snow removal or road treatment.
WATCH: Know the signs of frostbite and hypothermia
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