(NEXSTAR) — In nearly every state, winter weather advisories and warnings are in place, many related to the frigid cold temperatures that have been blasting the country since last week.
Much of the U.S. was even colder than Antarctica on Monday. With temperatures at two of its three stations between 30°F and 36°F, places like Denver, Salt Lake City, and Chicago were way colder (temperatures were -6°F, 16°F, and 2°F, respectively, at airports within the cities, according to the National Weather Service). When you factor in the wind chill, temperatures in parts of Texas were below 10°F Tuesday morning.
As of 11 a.m. CT Tuesday, it’s 36° F at the Palmer Station in Antarctica and 27° F at the McMurdo Station, according to the United States Antarctic Program. At Chicago O’Hare International Airport, for example, it’s 0° F, but the windchill makes it feel like -19° F — which is, however, warmer than a third station in Antarctica, the South Pole Station, where the temperature is -22° F.
Back in the U.S., nearly 30 states have some or all of their counties under a wind chill warning or advisory as of Tuesday morning, according to the NWS. Wind chills below -30°F are expected across much of the Rockies, Great Plains, and Midwest through Tuesday, the NWS Weather Prediction Center (NWSWPC) said Monday night.
“These wind chills could cause frostbite on exposed skin in a few minutes and hypothermia shortly thereafter,” the NWSWPC wrote in a social media post. “Temperatures are expected to moderate midweek. However, a new surge of colder air will drop south over the northern Plains and Midwest, reaching the Deep South by the end of the week.”
Once we get through this week, though, it seems temperatures will rebound.
According to the NWS’s 8-14 day temperature outlook released Monday, all of the U.S. (except Alaska) has a chance at above-normal temperatures on the horizon.
Those in the upper Midwest — northeastern Illinois, Wisconsin, and much of Michigan — have the best chances of seeing above-normal temperatures next week. The rest of the Midwest, as well as the Northeast, East Coast, and most of the Gulf states also have a high chance of temperatures warming up.
Remember those cities we mentioned before that were colder than Antarctica on Monday? All three are expected to see high temperatures above 30°F in the coming week: Denver could see 53°F on Sunday, according to KDVR; Salt Lake City could reach 43°F, KTVX reports; and Chicago has 33°F as a possible high for Monday.
What about El Niño?
As you may recall, we’re in an El Niño year. In December, the Climate Prediction Center said this winter’s El Niño was slightly favored to be “historically strong.”
During an El Niño winter, California and the Southern U.S. typically see a colder, wetter winter, while the Pacific Northwest and Ohio Valley have a warm, dry winter.
However, El Niño hasn’t exactly been living up to the hype in some parts of the country. In California, for example, many areas are below normal when it comes to rainfall, Joe Sirard, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service office in Los Angeles, told Nexstar’s KTLA.
When it comes to El Niño, it’s important to remember its typical weather isn’t a guarantee, Michelle L’Heureux, a scientist at the Climate Prediction Center previously explained to Nexstar. It’s always in terms of probabilities, just like the temperature outlook featured above.
Regardless, winter won’t last forever, and temperatures will undoubtedly warm up soon.
