The most expansive fall-like air of the season so far will sweep into much of the United States through the weekend, ushering in much colder air that could set record lows for mid-October in the West.
This powerful cold front has already brought much colder air to the Rockies and Great Basin. The chilly temperatures are now pushing into the Plains and will spread into the Midwest and parts of the South into the weekend. This system will also wring out a major, potentially October record-setting snowstorm in the northern Plains.
Very sharp temperature drops will accompany the front. After a high of 74 degrees Wednesday afternoon, Cheyenne, Wyoming, is experiencing wind chills near 0 Thursday morning. Denver is expected to drop from a high of 83 degrees Wednesday to a low in the mid-teens on Friday morning.
A Chilling Reality Check
This powerful cold front will continue its charge south and eastward into the Plains, Mississippi Valley and Great Lakes Thursday and Friday.
Highs will plunge from 10 to as much as 40 degrees below average after the front passes through.
Through late week, high temperatures may be stuck in the 30s over a large part of the northern Plains and 20s over parts of the Rockies and northern High Plains.
Highs may struggle into the 50s or 60s from parts of Texas into Tennessee late this week into the weekend.
Morning lows will be downright uncomfortable by mid-October standards.
Teens and 20s will be the rule in the northern Great Basin, Rockies and High Plains late in the week. A few areas with fresh snowpack may see morning lows plunge into the single digits. Some high basins, such as North and Middle Park in Colorado, could even see readings tumble below zero on Friday morning.
A number of daily record lows will be in jeopardy in such cities as Denver; Boise, Idaho; and Salt Lake City. Denver may dip below 15 degrees on Friday morning, which would be the city's coldest temperature so early in the autumn in any year dating back to the 1870s.
Daily record lows were set on Thursday morning in Great Falls, Montana (2 degrees), Burns, Oregon (10 degrees), and Boise, Idaho (25 degrees).
The rapid, intense freeze could have major impacts on trees and shrubs that remain in full leaf in many parts of the region, including the Denver area, following one of the warmest Septembers on record.
It may also lead to a flash freeze on roads in areas where rain or light, wet snow melting on roads is immediately followed by subfreezing temperatures behind the cold front.
The colder air will also penetrate into the South.
This weekend, lows in the 30s are possible as far south as west-central Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas, with widespread first frosts and freezes in the Plains and upper Mississippi Valley. Some lows in the 40s will seep into the lower Mississippi Valley, Tennessee Valley and Carolinas just over a week after the October record heat.
This late week cold front will be cold enough to generate snow. And it wouldn't simply occur in the higher elevations of the Rockies or adjacent Front Range, as was the case with the record-smashing September snowstorm just over a week ago.
Click here for more details on a major October snowstorm that's already cranking up.
This will be quite a shock to the system given the recent warm weather. Then again, we're moving deeper into October. We must have some autumn reality check, right?
The Weather Company’s primary journalistic mission is to report on breaking weather news, the environment and the importance of science to our lives. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.
The Weather Company’s primary journalistic mission is to report on breaking weather news, the environment and the importance of science to our lives. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.
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