After a whopping 701-day snow drought, New York's Central Park finally saw some snowfall, putting an end to the lengthy dry spell. Since midnight, the park received a modest inch (2.54 cm) of snow, while a total of 1.4 inches had fallen within the last day. As the snow breaks the extended streak, frigid temperatures continue to hold the US in its icy grip, causing school closures, grounded flights, and bone-chilling conditions.
As the clock struck 5 a.m., Dallas shivered at a bone-chilling 14F (-10C), with wind chills making it feel even colder, plummeting to -4F. Meanwhile, Houston forecasts a high of 24F and a low of 19F overnight. The harsh conditions have resulted in widespread wind chill warnings and advisories, stretching from Montana to Georgia.
While New York experienced a light dusting of snow, it was enough to shatter the previous record. The National Weather Service confirmed that Central Park surpassed its previous milestone of 383 snowless days, which occurred back on March 21, 1998.
These wintry conditions have caused major disruptions across the US. Federal offices in Washington D.C. and schools in Chicago were forced to close on Tuesday due to heavy snowfall. Flight cancellations have also been rampant, with 1,251 flights already being called off as of 7:30 a.m. EST, most notably in Houston.
Fortunately, Texas can expect a gradual defrosting this week as a cold blast begins moving towards the northeast. By Thursday, Dallas and Houston are forecasted to reach temperatures of 56F and 66F, respectively. However, Central Park may see lows of 19F (-7.2C) on Friday night.
While the cold weather lingers across the Great Plains and Midwest, most of the US will start to experience milder conditions in the coming weeks. The polar vortex will retreat, allowing temperatures to rise as much as 25F above normal in various areas. Rob Carolan, the owner of Hometown Forecast Services, predicts that "much of the eastern two-thirds of the country will end the month on a mild note."
Furthermore, projected heating degree days, an indicator of energy demand affected by weather, have dropped in the past 24 hours. This decline suggests that warmer weather is on the horizon, as forecasted by Commodity Weather Group LLC.
In other weather-related news, there are currently two tropical cyclones in the southern Indian Ocean. Cyclone Belal, a Category 1 storm on the Saffir-Simpson scale, is situated south of Mauritius and east of Madagascar with winds of about 75 miles per hour. To the east of Belal, Cyclone Anggrek churns harmlessly in the open ocean.
Additionally, severe thunderstorms are anticipated to sweep across southern Australia in the coming days. This weather event is expected to be characterized by heavy rainfall, according to Angus Hines, a forecaster with the Australian Bureau of Meteorology.
The wintry weather has also led to disruptions at Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport, where dozens of flights have been canceled and over 100 have been delayed due to the snowy conditions.