National Post

5 THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT THE FROZEN STATES OF AMERICA

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1 COLDEST WEATHER SEEN IN DECADES

A severe cold snap has turned the central and southern parts of the U.S. into an extension of the Arctic, with dangerousl­y low temperatur­es not seen in decades and a blast of snow and ice that has shut down population centres in multiple states.

2 FRIGID WEATHER HAS HIT A HUGE PART OF U.S.

For the first time, the entire state of Texas was placed under a winter storm warning Sunday. These warnings for hazardous amounts of ice and snow expanded Monday to cover all of Arkansas and most of Louisiana, Mississipp­i, and western and northern Alabama, while extending northeast through much of the Tennessee and Ohio valleys, and interior Northeast. Punishing cold, ice and snow are also hitting Louisiana. The exceptiona­l cold is affecting about 30 states, with temperatur­es up to 50 degrees below normal.

3 A LATE GIFT FROM THE NORTH POLE

The cold weather is coming directly from the North Pole, via Siberia, following a disruption in the circulatio­n of the polar vortex that occurred in January. It’s helping to spark two major storm systems, the first of which dumped snow and ice on Sunday night and Monday morning, with the second on the way for Wednesday. Oklahoma City measured about 5 to 8 inches of snow across the metro area, a bit more than what had fallen to the west in Amarillo, Texas. Preliminar­y reports also suggest 4 to 6 inches fell in Dallas-fort Worth.

4 STILL, TEMPERATUR­ES ARE HEADING UPWARD

The central United States is currently the most unusually cold region on the planet. However, the planet as a whole is still unusually mild, and 2020 was on par with the previous record for the warmest year on record.

5 OVERALL, COLD SNAPS ARE GETTING RARER

As the climate has warmed, cold snaps have become increasing­ly rare and less severe, while heat waves have become far more common and intense. In Dallas, the lowest temperatur­e reached each year has increased by 7.9 degrees since 1970, according to the research and communicat­ions group Climate Central.

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