It could be a historic end to February as multiple days of above-average temperatures could lead to hundreds of broken records from the Southeast to the Ohio Valley and mid-Atlantic starting later this week and continuing through the weekend.
An area of high pressure is settling across the Southeast, and that will aid in the development of a powerful coast-to-coast storm system that will bring blizzard conditions and a significant icing threat to millions of people in the northern U.S.
Much of the Southeast is expected to have multiple days of record-breaking heat starting Wednesday, with high temperatures in the mid-80s.
In fact, parts of Florida could break February records that have stood for years with high temperatures that could exceed 90 degrees.
Orlando, Florida, has only hit 90 degrees in February three times since 1892:
The forecast calls for 90-degree temperatures in Orlando on Wednesday, 91 degrees on Thursday and 90 degrees on Friday and Saturday.
With the warm air in place across the Southeast this week, record high temperatures are also in jeopardy from Texas to the Ohio Valley and into the mid-Atlantic. Records could fall from as far south as the Gulf Coast to as far north as New Jersey along the East Coast.
More records could fall in the Southeast and Florida by Friday.
In the West, bitterly cold arctic air is returning with a vengeance.
A strong cold front will drop into the U.S. from Canada, and that will send temperatures plunging across the Northwest, portions of the West Coast and parts of the Rocky Mountains.
The coldest temperatures will be felt across the northern tier, where wind chills could drop to between 30 and 40 degrees below zero.
The record-breaking cold temperatures will likely occur closer to the West Coast.
Many areas in the Pacific Northwest will see record-low temperatures on Thursday night and Friday morning, with temperatures getting into the 20s in places like Seattle and Portland, Oregon.
Farther south, there aren’t too many records that will be broken. However, dozens of cities could see some of their coldest high temperatures on Thursday and Friday, with places such as San Francisco and San Jose in California, dropping to around 50 degrees. According to the FOX Forecast Center, that hasn’t happened during this time of the year in a few decades.