Maps Show States Expecting Sudden Change as Temperatures Plunge

A series of maps published by the National Weather Service’s (NWS) Weather Prediction Center show that several states are expecting an unseasonable dip in temperatures this week.
The forecast says states in the Midwest, Northeast and the West Coast will experience high temperatures more commonly associated with fall weather as a cold front brings a temporary respite from the summer heat. Other states, however, will experience above-average temperatures.
“A cold front will bring much cooler than average, comfortable temperatures to the Midwest and Northeast this week,” the NWS Weather Prediction Center posted on X, (formerly Twitter) on Sunday. “Portions of the West will see cooler than average temperatures as well. The Southern Plains will remain above average and very hot.”
In the post, the NWS Weather Prediction Center included five pictures in a video progression showing the high temperatures expected across the U.S. and how they differ from the average. On Monday, cooler than normal weather will occur across the Northeast, with western New York and Pennsylvania expecting the lowest highs, at 67 and 69 degrees, respectively. On the West Coast, high temperatures in northwestern California will dip to 64.
On Tuesday, the cold front will further take hold in the Northeast and also start to spread into the Midwest, dropping high temperatures to the mid-60s through the mid-70s, depending on the state. Temperatures will begin to rise in the Midwest and Northeast by Wednesday, further stabilizing on Thursday as the West Coast experiences a dip, with highs ranging from the low 60s to the mid-70s across California, Washington and Oregon.
By Friday, temperatures will have returned to normal across much of the U.S., except for California, Oregon and western Nevada, where they will remain lower than normal.
NWS meteorologist Marc Chenard told Newsweek that Tuesday and Wednesday will likely be the coolest days. He attributed the cooler weather to a strong “troughing” in the mid- and upper levels of the atmosphere. A trough is a region of low pressure, which is associated with cooler air.
“The weather pattern overall is favoring that troughing in the East,” Chenard said. “Those are the features responsible for the colder air.”
Chenard said high temperatures will be as much as 15 degrees below average in some areas, with lows dipping into the 40s and 50s in parts of the Ohio Valley.
Meanwhile, northern states like Montana are expecting highs above average, nearing the 90s, and Texas temperatures will be in the 100s. Highs in South Dakota could hit 100 by midweek, which is above the state’s average highs for this time of year.
Although still considered above average for much of the U.S., temperatures will start to neutralize on Friday, with highs ranging from the high 80s to low 100s across much of the nation.
On Monday, the heat prompted NWS meteorologists to issue excessive heat warnings and heat advisories for Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana and the Florida Panhandle, as well as Southern California and south-central Arizona.