Our collective "lost winter" carries on, with a new burst of warmth set to converge on large chunks of the United States early this week. The Washington Post reports that record-busting temperatures are expected through Wednesday in parts of the Midwest and along the East Coast, with the mercury predicted to rise 20 degrees (Fahrenheit) to 40 degrees above average for this time of year. The Weather Channel calls it "a fitting end to one of the warmest winters" for these parts of the country, with little snow and ice and mostly mild conditions, while CNN notes that the higher temperatures moving in could be "the final nail in the coffin of a winter like no other."
TWC notes that temperatures are set to rise into the 60s, 70s, and even 80s in the nation's midsection, with cities including Green Bay, Wisconsin; Des Moines, Iowa; and St. Louis seeing especially large spikes. Further south will get even hotter: Dallas is expected to hit 90 degrees on Monday, which is more typical of an early June day there than a late February one. Meanwhile, by Wednesday, the warm air will have moved to Northeast cities like Philly and New York, where temperatures are expected to be in the 60s, and the Southeast "will continue to sizzle."
Per CNN, snowfall is a few feet below normal for this time of year in the Midwest and around the Great Lakes, while "ice is also almost nowhere to be found" on said lakes. By late February, about 40% of the Great Lakes are typically covered in ice, but this year that figure has fallen to just 6%. Wildfire alerts have gone out in multiple states, including Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri, and Iowa, per ABC News. The Post notes that "both human-caused climate change and the strong El Niño climate pattern are driving this exceptionally warm winter season." The polar vortex may bring more of a chill back in March, but that's not a definite yet, scientists say. (More warm weather stories.)
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