New Yorkers Embrace the January Thaw

Check out this exclusive video report taped earlier today from New York City’s Union Square on the east side of Manhattan. See and hear what The Northeast Quadrant author/contributor, Devin has to say about how New Yorkers are embracing the January Thaw!

40 Never Looked So Good!

At The Northeast Quadrant we LOVE cold, nasty, winter weather... but it's been so frigid and stormy lately, we are welcoming the milder breeze with open arms and lighter coats -- and for now, throwing the hats, scarves and gloves back in the closet.

That's right! 40 (degrees) never looked so good! But listen Mr. January Thaw (see earlier blog post), you better not overstay your welcome!

The polar jet (or the northern branch of the jet stream), which for weeks has dipped into the deep south, is now retreating back into Canada, thus allowing a nice push of southerly warmth to infiltrate most of the United States. When this happens the gates are open for temperatures to climb back to seasonal levels, or even slightly above normal. Within The Northeast Quadrant, from New York to Boston, temperatures into the low 40s can be expected through Saturday, while Washington, DC could rise to 50. This is a region of the country that has only reached 40 degrees once or twice since Christmas.

However, while we're enjoying the outdoors this weekend and feeling a little more comfortable, cold arctic air will be building up in northern Canada just waiting for that strong polar jet to show signs of bending. When it does, it will make it's move and the frigid temperatures and snow will return (we hope).

Dead of Winter vs. January Thaw

For the past several weeks locations across the northern hemisphere, from North America to Europe and all the way to China, have been trying to cope with the constant arctic push that Mother Nature has thrown at us. So what does that mean now that we are 'officially' in the Dead of Winter?

The Dead of Winter is climatologically noted as the stretch of 20+ days, usually running from about January 10 - February 10 where normal daytime high temperatures in the northern hemisphere are at their absolute lowest. Well, now that's confusing right? Because yesterday was January 10 and it's been pretty darn hace frio outside already!

Well, brace yourselves for a warm up! That's right! Despite the fact that we are in the dead of winter we are about to enter a phenomenon well-known in the weather world as the "January Thaw!"

Accuweather.com says, "Gradual warming will take place across the Plains and Midwest through the middle of the upcoming week as warmer air spreads in from the Southwest. Across much of the Eastern Seaboard, temperatures will slowly rise throughout the entire week. With the warm-up, millions of people can look forward to spending more time outdoors. Energy demands and heating bills will be lower as compared to last week. Since temperatures will be warming gradually, issues with street flooding and ice jams due to melting snow and ice are expected to be minimal."

Despite the hype, for many the warmer temperatures just mean it's going to be near normal. It probably won't last too long so enjoy it!