If you felt a little cold on your commute yesterday morning, you're not alone. It was the coldest November morning on record in the continental United States in 40 years on average, across the board.
All 50 states in the US experienced a temperature at or below 32 degrees, the freezing point, at 7 a.m. the morning of November 18. This includes states that are typically warm year-round, such as Hawaii. The 48 continental states had an average temperature of a chilly 19.4 degrees Fahrenheit.
According to Dr. Ryan Maue, a meteorologist at WeatherBELL, this is the coldest average temperature in November across the United States since 1976, 38 years ago.
Maue estimated that 226 million Americans live in areas that would be at or below 32 degrees F during the day on November 18. If you're curious about the breakdown across the country, check out this map that shows the population density of areas that will be at or below freezng.
The weather on average across the US has been 50 degrees Fahrenheit (10 degrees Celsius) colder during the past three days than it normally is during November, Maue wrote. For many regions, these temperatures will be the lowest they have been in over a decade, or maybe a century. This is even colder than the drop caused by the polar vortex last January.
The town of Joplin, Missouri had its coldest day on record at 6 degrees. Detroit had its coldest day on record since 1880. Kansas City, Missouri, had its coldest day on record since 1903. It was a record-breaking day for cold temperatures all over the US.
This is also the first time in over a decade that more than 50% of the country has been covered in snow this early in the year.
People in the U.S. should expect to experience colder than usual temperatures for at least the next five to six days. Another blast of air from the Arctic region will be due in the area of the Great Lakes on Thursday. Chicago, Minneapolis and Detroit will be especially hard-hit by the influx of cold air.
