So far, we have been on the fringes of these Arctic air blasts this winter, but the one that arrives today will dump all the way into Texas, sending temperatures below freezing as far south as the Lower Rio Grande Valley. This airmass is characterized by a massive 1050+ mb Arctic high dropping into the Plains from Canada. This, without a doubt, will be the coldest air of this winter. In fact, there is a concern for severe cold, with windchills as cold as ten below zero to 15 above both Wednesday and Thursday mornings, and temperatures approaching 10°F – 15°F at DFW with some of the colder spots reaching the single digits by Thursday morning. The strong Arctic blast will arrive in DFW over the next couple of hours with rapidly falling temperatures behind the boundary. Temperatures will fall to at or below freezing by 6pm this evening and are not forecast to get above freezing until Friday afternoon, making for a long duration of subfreezing conditions. As a result, an Extreme Cold Warning is now in effect. Temperatures this cold will be enough to freeze pipes, so make sure outdoor faucets are properly covered.

A Winter Weather Advisory is also in effect for most counties in our area from 5pm to midnight this evening. There is the potential for some very light wintry precipitation in the form of drizzle/mist Tuesday night into Wednesday morning. Should anything fall at all, ice accretions of up to a few one-hundredths of an inch will be possible, mainly on bridges and overpasses. This could result in slick driving conditions this evening. Extreme caution is advised if driving. The strong winds will help sublimate any ice by Wednesday morning, but caution is still advised on the morning commute.