A powerful Arctic air mass will begin its southeast spread from the Rockies on Friday, January 17, 2025, plunging temperatures well below freezing across large portions of the U.S. The cold front is forecast to sweep into the Gulf Coast and Midwest by Saturday night and will reach the Eastern Seaboard by Sunday night.
Minimum wind chills are forecast to dip as low as -34 °C (-30 °F) or lower in parts of the Rockies, northern Plains, and Upper Midwest from Saturday, January 18, through Tuesday, January 21.
The extreme cold poses a high risk of hypothermia and frostbite for exposed skin. Residents are advised to carry cold-weather survival kits if traveling and to limit outdoor exposure.
Wind chill values below -18 °C (0 °F) are expected to extend into the southern Plains and Ohio Valley by Sunday night, lasting into Tuesday. The cold air mass is likely to linger along the Gulf Coast and Southeast through much of the following week.
Intense snow squalls are expected to develop as the cold front advances southward through the Rockies and into the High Plains. These bursts of heavy snowfall, combined with gusty winds, are likely to cause sudden whiteout conditions, making travel treacherous.
