After a relatively tranquil first week of January, the discussion is growing to a frantic pitch of a coming bitter weather pattern for the central and eastern United States. At the end of December, the seeds were planted letting you know that January should turn cold and stormy, and that is on schedule.

The famed "Polar Vortex" has split thanks to a strong Sudden Stratospheric Warming episode (SSW). This phenomenona occurs every so often, usually in mid to late December, when winds and pressures are altered high above the North Pole. This leads to strong, Arctic blocking, a forcing mechanism that splits the polar low, pushes it south, and leads to bitter Arctic air encompassing areas away from the pole.

The image above depicts this very aspect. High pressure located over Greenland and the North Pole, with polar vorticies split farther south. Those are the blues and purples seen across the eastern and central United States, western Europe, and eastern Asia. Storminess will also grow, giving a good portion of the United States the threat of snow. Places that normally do not get snow will have chances to cash in, so please stay tuned as we watch the pattern evolve.

Forecast Provided By: Meteorologist Joshua Ketchen