New York City

Decades-Old Records Broken as Arctic Blast Freezes Tri-State — But a Brief Thaw Is Coming

A cold front will slide through Friday evening, bringing another shot of cold air for the weekend

Latest Forecast From Storm Team 4

What to Know

  • Temperatures slowly climb up Thursday after the coldest air in eight months froze the tri-state
  • The volatile weather pattern continues later this week, as the region could see temperatures into the 50s by Friday before they drop again
  • The mercury does climb up a bit early next week, with Storm Team 4 forecasting temps in the 50s with some rain showers

Temperatures slowly climb up Thursday after the coldest air in eight months froze the tri-state, bringing record-breaking cold to the region.

The blast of frigid, arctic air sticks around into the early morning but highs will up up to around 45 compared to the below-freezing temps on the previous day, according to Storm Team. Despite more clouds filling in, most areas will stay relatively dry and quiet on Thursday, though a few spotty sprinkles can’t be ruled out entirely east of the city midday. 

As the volatile weather pattern continues, temperatures will fluctuate from 30 to low 50s for the next 10 days.

By Friday afternoon, highs should be back in the 50s. A cold front will slide through Friday evening, bringing another shot of cold air for the weekend.

Storm Team 3
The stormiest weather of the season could settle right over our region.
Storm Team 4
This season will be more neutral, with no El Nino or La Nina. That puts the northeast in the crosshairs.
Storm Team 4
Cold air should follow the jet stream down from the arctic to the tri-state.
Storm Team 3
The stormiest weather of the season could settle right over our region.
Storm Team 4
Over the course of the last 140 years, Central Park snowfall has been trending lower.
Storm Team 4
But over the last 30 years, Central Park has been snowier. In fact, six of the 10 biggest storms happened in the last 20 years.

The mercury does climb up a bit early next week, with Storm Team 4 forecasting temps in the 50s with some rain showers through next Thursday. 

Record daily lows were set earlier this week across the region, from 25 degrees at Central Park (beating the previous record of 26 form 1926) to 25 in Bridgeport, Connecticut (previous record of 28 set in 2013) to 25 in Newark, New Jersey (previous record of 28 from 2017).

The New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) activated its emergency heat response plan Tuesday evening, which is set to help any residents who are experiencing issues with heat in the buildings amid record-breaking cold. Katherine Creag reports.

The arctic blast has not only sent shivers across the tri-state -- it has spread through the Midwest and eastern states, with the bitter weather setting new cold-temperature records from Mississippi to Maine.

Temperatures dipped to single digits early Wednesday across parts of the Northeast, not only just in New York City, but Buffalo and parts of Vermont and Ohio. The unseasonably cold weather extended to the Gulf Coast.

The incredibly cold temperatures have followed a snowstorm that the National Weather Service said contributed to nearly 30 percent of the country being covered in snow as of Wednesday.

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