Spring erased; Winterlike conditions spilling into the Central states

A surge of Arctic air that smashed record low temperatures in Alaska late this past week has arrived in the Lower 48, bringing a return of winterlike conditions across the center of the country.

Temperatures rose to late-spring levels across the Plains prior to the cold push, making the surge of chilly weather that much more dramatic. Temperatures that rose into the 70s and 80s F in places like Denver; Rapid City, South Dakota; and Amarillo, Texas; in early April fell 20 to 30 degrees short of these marks during the early part of this week.

Along with the surge of cold air, snowflakes that arrived across the northern Plains on Monday night will continue to fall into Wednesday morning.

The radar from Tuesday night, April 13, 2021, shows pockets of snow stretching from Montana to Minnesota as winter makes a comeback. (AccuWeather)

Nearly 10 inches of snow fell in Crosby, North Dakota, during the early part of this week, with Minot picking up 8 inches. Snow reached Minneapolis on Tuesday, with visibility being reduced to less than 2 miles for a time in the evening.

Snow showers will shift eastward into the Great Lakes region at midweek; however, the chilly air will continue to remain in place and expand across the center of the country.

The round of snow across the northern Plains will not be the only wintry weather across the center of the nation to speak of this week. Another storm diving into the Northwest is expected to spread a cold rain and even accumulating snow across portions of the Rockies, Front Range and High Plains.

While most of the accumulating snow will be limited to mountainous areas through the day on Wednesday, the storm is expected to drag cold enough air along the Front Range by Wednesday night, possibly leading to a few travel issues along Interstate 25 in Colorado and Wyoming before the Thursday morning commute.

Snow may continue to expand eastward into the Plains during the day on Thursday. The Black Hills of South Dakota and western Nebraska may also be included in this late-season round of snowfall. While major snowfall totals aren't expected from this storm, it will prove to be a nuisance for any residents itching to get their gardens or farm work started for the season.

The back-to-back storm systems through midweek across the Rockies and Plains will act to keep below-average temperatures in place through much of the week. Looking even further out into the upcoming weekend and early next week, the cooler-than-average conditions may try to remain in place. It may take until mid- to late week next week for temperatures to finally rebound and climb to above-average levels.

Although many residents across the Plains may be becoming tired of the cold weather, the chilly conditions will keep the threat of severe weather out of the picture this week. In what can typically be a very active time period for severe weather across the Plains, this will come as good news to residents knowing that severe thunderstorms will remain at bay over the coming days.

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