6:00 AM | ****Incredible cold into Saturday with sub-zero temperatures possible in the I-95 corridor...could be the coldest air mass since January 1994****

[Record or near record lows this morning in a widespread area; map courtesy "coolwx.com"]

6-Day Philly Forecast

Today

Brutally cold today with varying amounts of clouds and a few more snow showers are possible, temperatures will do no better than the middle teens and strong winds will generate sub-zero wind chills

Tonight

Incredible cold with partly cloudy skies, still windy with painfully cold well below zero wind chills, low temperatures by morning could reach sub-zero levels of between -1 and -5 degrees

Friday

Fierce cold with partial sunshine, quite windy early, but diminishing winds during the afternoon hours, highs may not even reach the lower teens

Friday Night

Another incredibly cold night with partly cloudy skies, calm conditions, lows by morning can again drop to zero degrees or slightly below

Saturday

After a bitter cold start, skies will become cloudy and snow is possible later in the afternoon, temperatures will moderate during the afternoon with highs late near 30 degrees; mixed precipitation of snow, sleet and freezing rain is likely Saturday night

Sunday

Any early mixed precipitation will change to plain rain, milder, low 40’s

Monday

Partly sunny, colder again, windy, mid 20’s

Tuesday

Partly sunny, very cold, low-to-mid 20’s

Discussion

Another blast of Arctic air is flooding into the Mid-Atlantic region and this could turn out to be the most extreme of all this winter. There are widespread record or near record lows this morning in the eastern half of the nation and records are likely in many locations during the next couple of mornings. A few examples from this morning across the Midwest include Chicago, IL at -8 degrees which is a record for the date, -11 degrees at Mount Vernon, IL which is a record for the month, and Cape Girardeau, MO at -18 degrees which has tied their all-time record low.

Temperatures around here today will be confined to the teens for highs and strong winds will generate sub-zero wind chill values. There can still be some snow shower activity today as the Arctic air continues to pour into the region. Temperatures in the overnight hours will likely drop to sub-zero levels in many parts of the I-95 corridor which would be record-breaking territory. After a bitter cold day on Friday, temperatures may drop once again to zero or slightly below by early Saturday morning, but then the trend will be up for temperatures - at least temporarily. In fact, by Sunday afternoon high temperatures should get back to rather seasonal levels with highs in the 40’s ahead of yet another Arctic blast which will arrive early next week. There can be some snow late Saturday as the milder air advances into the region and then mixed precipitation of snow, sleet and freezing rain is likely Saturday night before a changeover to plain rain on Sunday as temperatures climb – at least for a short time - to the 40’s.

Video

httpv://youtu.be/HMchQWFULjs