Arctic cold overtakes US as huge winter storm looms

Arctic cold overtakes US as huge winter storm looms

Doyle Rice, USA TODAY

Tue, January 20, 2026 at 4:57 PM UTC

3 min read

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January is doing its January thing.

As an Arctic air mass covers much of the eastern United States Tuesday, Jan. 20, forecasters are warning of a sprawling winter storm that's predicted to spread a mess of ice and snow over a 2,000 mile stretch of the nation later this week, all the way from Texas to the Northeast.

But first, through midweek, numerous shots of cold, Arctic air and rounds of lake-effect snow will continue to impact portions of the Midwest, Great Lakes and Northeast states, according to AccuWeather.

Ice collects on the fountain Friday, Jan. 16, 2026, at the Westin Poinsett Hotel in Greenville, South Carolina. The Upstate is expected to see freezing temperatures and the possibility of snow over the weekend.

Maclovio Vega shows his 9-year-old son Maky Vega how to go down a hill with a sled at McKinley Park on Saturday Jan.17, 2026 in Milwaukee, Wisc.

A white-tailed deer forages along Impounding Dam Road in the snow, Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026, in West Manheim Township, Pa.

A worker uses a leaf blower to clear snow along Route 202 in Somers, NY on Jan. 17, 2026.

Traffic is slow entering Interstate 684 in Brewster, NY during a steady snowfall on Jan. 17, 2026.

A North Salem Highway Department snowplow works along Route 116 in North Salem, NY on Jan. 17, 2026.

A workers clearing snow on a sidewalk along Katonah Ave in downtown Katonah, NY on Jan. 17, 2026.

Snow falls on Grove Street in Montclair, NJ, early on Sunday, Jan. 18, 2026.

A town snow plow clears an intersection in Ashburnham, Mass. on Jan. 18, 2026. Ashburnham received 7 inches of snow, according to the National Weather Service.

Snow falls early Sunday morning Jan. 18, 2026 off University Pkwy in Pensacola, Fla.

Snow falls early Sunday morning Jan. 18, 2026 at The University of West Florida in Pensacola, Fla.

A sign warns of possible icy conditions in Pensacola, Fla. on Jan. 18, 2026.

Snow falls early Sunday morning Jan. 18, 2026 at a car dealership in Pensacola, Fla.

See a brutal cold blast blanket the Eastern US

Ice collects on the fountain Friday, Jan. 16, 2026, at the Westin Poinsett Hotel in Greenville, South Carolina. The Upstate is expected to see freezing temperatures and the possibility of snow over the weekend.

Dangerously cold, with hypothermia possible

Frigid temperatures were the main story Tuesday, Jan. 20. In Minnesota, "the dangerously cold wind chills as low as 38 below zero could cause frostbite on exposed skin in as little as 10 minutes," the National Weather Service warned on the morning of Jan. 20.

This frigid Arctic airmass will remain in place from the Midwest to the Northeast/Mid-Atlantic Jan. 20, the weather service said. Highs in the teens and 20s are temperatures that are 15 to 25 degrees below average.

A dog owner braves the winter cold to hike in Goodyear Heights Metropark in Akron on Jan. 15, 2026.

In the South, freezing to near-freezing temperatures have prompted freeze warnings from southern Georgia into central Florida for Tuesday night.

As the cold lingers and even strengthens as the week progresses, "the threat of frostbite and hypothermia will grow for anyone spending time outdoors," said AccuWeather meteorologist Alyssa Glenny in an online forecast. "The sustained Arctic chill will also result in increased heating and energy usage across roughly a third of the nation."

Winter storm on the way

"Confidence continues to increase on an expansive major winter storm impacting much of the southern and eastern portions of the country Friday (Jan. 23) through Sunday (Jan. 25)," the weather service said on Jan. 20.

Specifically, the wide-ranging winter storm will produce great swaths of heavy snow, sleet and treacherous freezing rain from the southern Rockies/Plains and Mid-South starting Friday and shifting toward the East Coast through Sunday.

"On the southern side of this system, significant freezing rain is expected, likely resulting in dangerous travel conditions and power outages," the weather service said.

Exactly where this storm sets up and tracks will determine where the snow and ice will be, according to AccuWeather. Residents from Colorado and Wyoming through the mid-Atlantic and New England coasts are urged to stay on alert for forecast updates, especially with the threat of ice becoming a possibility.

"The ingredients are coming into place for a long-duration storm that brings a substantial amount of snow, sleet and freezing rain from Texas and southern portions of the Plains to the lower and middle parts of the Mississippi Valley late this week and then into the East this weekend," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Alex Sosnowski said.

A massive swath of snow and freezing rain is forecast for the upcoming storm.

Warm West

Elsewhere, temperatures will be above average in the West this week.

In many areas, including Seattle, San Francisco and Salt Lake City, high temperatures will run 5 to 10 degrees above average for mid-January, AccuWeather said. For reference, average daily highs are in the upper 40s in Seattle, the upper 50s in San Francisco and the upper 30s in Salt Lake City.

In some locations, such as Los Angeles, temperatures will reach the 70s, or 5 to 10 degrees above historical averages.

In Phoenix, highs will be mainly in the upper 70s to near 80 through the middle of the week.

In Las Vegas, highs will range from the mid-60s to near 70.

Doyle Rice is a national correspondent for USA TODAY, focusing on weather and climate.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Massive winter storm looms as arctic weather overtakes US

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