A dramatic cooldown will send temperatures plummeting to the low 30s in major cities, sending residents of the Plains and Midwest scurrying for their coats ahead of the chilliest conditions since April.
Updated Oct. 31, 2021 7:50 PM EDT
Residents of the Plains and Midwest may be grabbing their coats and hats this week as a dramatic cooldown chills the region. This will arrive after higher-than-average temperatures warmed the region for weeks at the beginning of autumn.
"After a considerably warm start to the fall season, a cold front drawing air from northern Canada will finally dip into the northern U.S. this week," said AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Matt Rinde.
This cold front will envelop major cities around the Great Lakes, including Chicago and Detroit, while also dipping far enough south to chill residents in Omaha, Nebraska. Low temperatures in the Windy City are forecast to dive into the low-30s at the start of this week, temperatures that haven't been seen since April.
"This cold front will spread some of the coldest weather of the season so far and only felt as recently as this past spring," Rinde said.
Rapid City, South Dakota, has seen temperatures hang around 4 degrees F above average since late September. Come Monday, they could have temperatures diving into the upper teens. Several other cities in the High Plains could also see dips into the lower 20s for multiple nights.
"While this colder push will be considerably lower than recent days and thus far this season, temperatures will actually fall pretty close to average for the early part of November," said Rinde.
Despite temperatures floating around normal, this first chill is expected to feel particularly potent, since residents have not yet adjusted to the lower temperatures that arrive this time of year. Heating costs are likely to soar this week for the first time since last spring.
"The colder air will set up a possible conveyor of unsettled weather through the central Plains into the Middle Atlantic," Rinde explained.
On Halloween, snow and rain have been observed streaking out into the Plains, impacting mainly western South Dakota and Nebraska. Then, precipitation is likely to expand farther into Nebraska and Kansas on Halloween night. As temperatures cool, a swath of 1-3 inches of snow is expected to extend from southeastern Wyoming into central Nebraska.
The snow will likely taper off to a few chilly rain showers on Monday as the area of unsettled weather shifts into the Midwest.
Farther south, rain will likely begin to blossom by Tuesday in the southern Plains, before becoming more widespread by midweek.
"The most intense precipitation and thunderstorm potential exists in the southern Plains to lower Mississippi Valley, especially on Wednesday, which will raise concerns for localized flash flooding," said AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Tyler Roys.
Much of the northern Plains and Upper Midwest will likely be shielded from precipitation as a dip in the jet stream steers the storm around to the Northeast instead, but areas by the Great Lakes should keep an eye out this week.
"It is that time of year where these systems have the potential for some decent snowfall due to the available moisture during the fall months," Rinde added.
This flow, in combination with the cold air in place over the Great Lakes, can also cause some lake-effect snow, especially off the northwestern Great Lakes.
"Some of this snow could accumulate in the overnight hours," added Roys.
As the week comes to a close, the potential for storms continues across the region, especially in southern areas.
"There is the potential for another round of enhanced precipitation across the southern Plains, Gulf Coast and Southeast next weekend as a storm tracks eastward," said Roys.
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