How long will this weekend’s harsh chill last in the northeastern US?

By Renee Duff, AccuWeather meteorologist

October 21, 2018, 10:52:57 AM EDT

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With the northeastern United States facing gusty winds, plummeting temperatures and even snow this weekend, residents may be wondering how long the taste of winter will last.

Jackets, sweatshirts, hats and gloves will need to be the outerwear of choice for any outdoor activities through Sunday as a new wave of cold air plunges in.

After first reaching the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes on Saturday, the chill swept to the Atlantic coast on Saturday night.

While, the weekend started mild along the Northeast’s Interstate-95 corridor, high temperatures will be slashed by 10-20 degrees Fahrenheit on Sunday.

“As chilly as this past Thursday was, Sunday’s air mass will be even colder,” AccuWeather Meteorologist Kyle Elliott said.

Sunday’s highs will be in the 30s and 40s F across interior areas and 50s near the coast, but a gusty breeze will push AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperatures up to 15 degrees lower.

“A quick coating to an inch or two of snow cannot be ruled out in the mountains of western Maryland and the Laurels of south-central Pennsylvania,” Elliott said.

The mountains of West Virginia may also be whitened by similar totals.

The snow will initially melt on the warm pavement, but as temperatures tumble as the night progresses, the risk of slick roadways will increase.

While snow showers will be most numerous over the Appalachian Mountains and Great Lakes, it is not out of the questions for wet snowflakes to streak toward the I-95 corridor from New York City to Boston during the early morning hours of Sunday.

As the snow showers and winds die down later in the day on Sunday, this will give way to a relatively clear sky east of the Appalachian Mountains on Sunday night for the peak of the Orionid meteor shower. Anyone heading outside to see the show will need to dress warmly.

Frost can develop overnight Sunday in the colder suburbs of the I-95 corridor, away from the coast.

“High temperatures should moderate a few degrees on Monday and a few more degrees by Tuesday,” Elliott said.

Monday, however, will feel much warmer than Sunday due to the absence of the gusty winds.

Download the free AccuWeather app to know when temperatures will be on the rise in your area.

Even with the harsh chill departing early in the week, temperatures will remain 4-8 degrees lower than normal for this time of year, especially across New England.

The main exception will be the lower mid-Atlantic, including the corridor from Washington, D.C., to New York City, where temperatures will briefly climb back to seasonable levels in the lower to middle 60s by Tuesday.

Another wave of cooler air is poised to sweep into the Northeast by midweek, accompanied by rain showers and possibly some snow downwind of the Great Lakes and across northern New England.

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