Spring Is Here, But Freezing Temperatures Will Stretch Deep Into the South

Even though spring began several days ago, and parts of the South are seeing trees and flowers in full bloom, we're looking at yet another surge of freezing temperatures that will extend deep into the South.

Freeze watches and warnings have been posted for parts of the Southeast in anticipation of near-record cold temperatures coming unseasonably late in the season. If you have started gardening or have potted plants outdoors, be prepared to take appropriate steps to protect those plants if you are in these areas.

A surge of cold air this past weekend will be reinforced by a second surge of cold air across much of the central and eastern U.S. Some locations are or will be 10 to 20 degrees below late-March averages.

Now let's step through the daily details of the early-spring chill:

Tuesday: Highs 10 to 20 degrees below average from the Missouri Valley through the East Coast, except from Texas and Oklahoma east along the Gulf Coast to Florida where temperatures will be closer to 5 degrees below average. (See inset map for details.)

Wednesday and Thursday: A new push of cold air into the Deep South, with Wednesday morning lows near or below freezing reaching into much of Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, as well as the Carolinas; some daily record lows are possible. Lows could reach the upper 30s as far south as northern Florida. Record lows also possible in the central and eastern Great Lakes region Wednesday morning with lows in the teens. Highs Wednesday 10 to 20 degrees below average from the Southern Plains to the eastern Great Lakes and East. The Plains warm up markedly. By Thursday morning, record lows in the teens and 20s are possible for many locations in the Northeast.

Somewhat warmer weather starts to arrive in the East Thursday afternoon, and by Friday temperatures should be above average in the Northeast.

The culprit for the persistently cold weather this winter, now lasting into the start of spring, is a tendency for the jet stream to dip southward repeatedly to the east of the Rockies. This has allowed bouts of Arctic air to pour into the central and eastern United States.

http://www.weather.com/news/weather-forecast/spring-arrives-will-it-feel-it-20140318