Polar vortex back in the forecast. How long will winter weather last?

Doyle Rice, USA TODAYThu, March 12, 2026 at 4:36 PM UTC

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Welcome back, winter!

After an extended May preview, the "false spring" in the eastern United States is over, and is being replaced by more typical chilly March weather (for now).

Highs in the 60s, 70s and 80s are being replaced by highs in the 40s, 50s and 60s, AccuWeather said.

Along with the chill, a pair of snowstorms are in the forecast for the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes over the next couple of days and later in the weekend, with heavy snow likely in parts of Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan.

Meanwhile, the southwestern U.S. is seeing a dramatic warm-up, with record heat possible in cities such as Los Angeles, Phoenix and Las Vegas as temperatures soar into the 90s.

Overall, the weather pattern over the next week or so will be similar to the pattern seen for much of the winter, with cold in the East and heat in the West.

1 / 0See fun faces of people making the best of winter weather

Jose Castillo of Tarrytown, NY. walks through snow along Route 9 in Tarrytown during the early hours of the winter storm Jan. 25, 2026. The storm was predicted to drop up to a foot of snow on the lower Hudson Valley. A huge winter storm dumped heavy amounts of snow and ice across wide swaths of the U.S.

A winter reality check

"Straight out of the textbook for wild swings in March weather, this winter reality check will follow on the heels of a severe weather outbreak and spell of record warmth in the central and eastern U.S. that will now intensify in the Southwest," said Weather.com meteorologist Jonathan Erdman in an online forecast.

The warmth included temperatures in the 80s as far north as New York City.

However, unlike the persistent cold from late January to February, this time, colder air will come in waves with warm surges in between, and March sunshine lending a hand, AccuWeather meteorologist Alex Sosnowski said in an online forecast.

While the eastern half of the U.S. shivers, the West will be very warm by early next week.Polar vortex ends 'false spring'

Not every cold wave is tied to the polar vortex, but this one is, AccuWeather said.

Another displacement or weakening of the polar vortex is underway, which can allow bursts of Arctic air to spill into the Midwest and Northeast at times, according to AccuWeather lead long-range meteorologist Paul Pastelok.

"There will be an active storm track with snow and ice along the U.S./Canada border this week," Pastelok said. "The wake of these storms will help draw colder air farther south. As the pattern evolves, a storm sometime from March 16-19 can bring mixed snow, ice and rain to parts of the East, with a more significant discharge of cold air to follow from the Plains to the East."

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Some subzero lows are possible in parts of North Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan's Upper Peninsula early next week, Erdman said. Much of the Deep South, including parts of far northern Florida, is forecast to dip below the freezing mark.

When will it warm up in the East?

If you've had enough of winter weather, especially following the recent warmth, there is some good news in the forecast, Erdman said.

"Warmer air should work its way eastward in the Plains by the middle of next week, then may ooze farther east later next week," Erdman said in an online forecast. "However, some longer-range models are suggesting some chillier air may spill back into parts of the Midwest and Northeast during the week of March 23."

Chances are increasing for a significant snowstorm in the north-central U.S. by the weekend.Blizzard in the north-central US?

After an Alberta Clipper dumps snow across the northern tier over the next couple of days, it is becoming more likely that a second, more significant winter storm will develop across the northern High Plains before rapidly strengthening as it moves into the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes over the weekend, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Weather Prediction Center said in an online forecast.

"At least six inches of snow is likely, with much higher amounts possible," the WPC said. "Snowfall rates that will likely exceed 1 inch per hour will combine with strong winds gusting 30-50 mph to produce extremely reduced visibility and dangerous to potentially impossible travel at times."

Weather Trader meteorologist Ryan Maue, in an email to USA TODAY, said that the storm could be classified as a bomb cyclone, and that blizzard conditions are likely.

Southwestern warmth could break records

While the East and central U.S. shivers, the southwestern U.S. will see near-record warmth over the next week or so.

Record highs may be challenged in Los Angeles on Thursday, March 12 and Friday, March 13, with temperatures near 90 degrees, AccuWeather said. Records could also be topped in Las Vegas and Phoenix through the weekend as the early-season desert heat wave throttles up.

Next week, Phoenix could hit the 100-degree mark as the heat intensifies. If the temperature in the city reaches the century mark before March 26, it would be the earliest 100-degree reading on record.

A Northwest mess

A plume of Pacific moisture with embedded storms will bring multiple rounds of heavy rain and mountain snow to western Washington, northwestern Oregon and southern British Columbia through the end of the week, Sosnowski said.

On Thursday, March 12, strong winds were reported across much of the interior Northwest. Tens of thousands of customers were without power in Washington and Idaho, according to USA TODAY's outage tracker.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Polar vortex is back, winter weather forecast says. What now?

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