Late-week cooldown to put spring on pause in Midwest, Northeast

A striking spring cooldown is expected across portions of the Midwest and Northeast during the middle to latter part of the week that will leave residents wondering if the calendar flipped back to early April instead of early May.

Many locations in the Midwest experienced above-normal warmth in the 80s and lower 90s F over the weekend, but conditions are expected to cool as the first full week of May begins.

A dip in the jet stream pattern, coupled with recent rainfall, will result in temperatures plummeting to mid-April standards.

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Many cities from Fargo, North Dakota, to Minneapolis, and even into Rapid City, South Dakota, and Omaha will see temperatures dip 5-15 degrees Fahrenheit below normal for this time of year. Normally, in early May, these cities experience high temperatures in the middle to upper 60s.

"Many locations could see temperatures drop below 32 degrees during the overnight hours on Tuesday, posing the risk for a frost, especially in normally colder spots," AccuWeather Meteorologist Alyssa Smithmyer explained.

However, a glimmer of hope for plant enthusiasts that will keep the frost and freeze threat at bay across the Midwest Tuesday night is that skies will remain cloudy overnight along with breezy conditions. These ingredients together will keep the frost and freezes isolated to the normally colder spots across the area.

As this storm moves east across the Great Lakes region, temperatures ahead of it will surge in the Northeast on Tuesday. Simultaneously, a lift in the jet stream pattern will bring temperatures 5-15 degrees above normal. This includes in cities like Erie, Pennsylvania; Detroit; Columbus, Ohio; Syracuse, New York; and Washington, D.C.

This warmth will not last long in the Northeast as temperatures are expected to plummet into the 50s and 60s by late week after a cold front moves through the region and the jet stream dives south. Normally this time of year, most cities in the Northeast experience temperatures in the mid-60s to low 70s. Lower-than-normal temperatures could be felt as far south as Atlanta and Charlotte by late week.

"A general drop in temperatures around 5-15 degrees is expected over the Great Lakes region into the Northeast late week. A city such as Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is set to reach a high of merely 55 by Friday, compared to a typical high in the upper 60s for this time of year," Smithmyer noted.

As cooler-than-normal air infiltrates the Northeast by late week, most locations across the region are not expected to experience a major frost or freeze event overnight Thursday and Friday. However, locations farther north in northern New England may want to bring any newly potted plants inside or have them covered, as normally colder spots could dip below freezing overnight.

Warm weather will make an appearance once again across the Midwest by late week as the jet stream surges north, but the Northeast may have to wait until next week until stubborn, chilly air vacates the region.

The persistent chilly air will be thanks to a storm that stalls over eastern Canada late this week into the weekend. This will cause high temperatures to remain in the 40s around the Great Lakes and in the 50s and 60s farther east into the I-95 corridor.

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