RECORD LOWS AND BEYOND...

Temperatures are going to be the coldest in over two months in parts of the Midwest by Wednesday morning. A big ridge of high pressure will keep the skies clear and the winds calm. Combined with a fresh snowpack that is a recipe for cold, cold, cold! Here's the surface pattern Wednesday morning... a big 'ol 1035 high:

The corresponding lows on the GFS:

I think these temperatures are too high by about 5 to 10 degrees in spots. In fact, many cities should see record or near record low temperatures (particularly in the snowpack). Here are the record lows and forecasts for a few cities around the Midwest for March 15:

Wednesday will be another cold day, then temperatures moderate toward the end of the week. Temperatures will be near and above normal and start to chip away at the snow. Here are the temperature departures on the GFS through Sunday:

These temperatures won't lead to much snow and the pattern won't be incredibly active. Here's the expected precipitation and snowfall over the next seven days:

The pattern looks interesting beyond that... something that will become more clear in the coming days. But here's some food for thought... there has been a history of March snowfall surpassing the totals of January and February combined. Here's the history in Chicago:

In Cedar Rapids it has happened 10 times (including this year - already!). Not just that, but 4 out of the 5 snowiest March's on record out-snowed January and February!

Two more weeks to go... anything goes in March in the Midwest!

RK