January U.S. Forecast: Freezing cold in Florida and rounds of snow return in U.S.

Last Updated: January 13, 2026By

After a brief thaw, winter will return with a vengeance for the rest of January across most of the eastern half of the U.S. with Arctic temperatures and rounds of snow for the Great Lakes and Interior Northeast. The winter chill will dip into parts of the Southeast where higher elevations in North Carolina and Tennessee could see snow as storms move across the region.

HOW TO WATCH FOX WEATHER

Meanwhile, the West Coast will see mild conditions return after weeks of repeated atmospheric rivers caused historic flooding across parts of California and the Pacific Northwest.

Beginning Friday, a dip in the jet stream will drape over parts of the Upper Midwest and over the rest of the eastern U.S.

SPRAWLING MIDWEEK STORM TO BRING SNOW TO LAKE-EFFECT REGIONS, TENNESSEE VALLEY WHILE EAST COAST STAYS WET

According to the FOX Forecast Center, this dip will allow both Arctic air and repeated winter storms to spill into the Lower 48 from Canada

“While none of these systems are expected to become blockbuster storms, they will restore the snowy and cold conditions,” the Forecast Center wrote Tuesday.

Bitter cold air will push deep into the Southeast, including Florida, where temperatures could be 15-20 degrees below average, sending iguanas plunging from trees as they get cold stunned. 

January snow expectations

This active pattern is a callback to much of December’s weather, where repeated snow even caught the attention of people in traditional snowbelts across the Midwest and the interior Northeast.

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Syracuse, New York, which deals with lake-effect snow from Lake Ontario every year, has already received more than 83 inches of snow this snowfall year-to-date, the most in more than a decade. 

Active pattern winter pattern returns
(FOX Weather)

 

And many of these same snowbelts along the Great Lakes should expect to see multiple rounds of snow over the next two weeks, as storms dive out of Canada. Snow should be able to reach the southern Appalachians and temperatures may even become cold enough for brief winter weather in states like Alabama, Georgia, and the lower elevations of the Carolinas.

Warm, calm conditions take hold across the West.
(FOX Weather)

 

Respite for the West

This pattern change will be a return to much-needed dry conditions across the West Coast, where weeks of atmospheric rivers have led to deadly historic flooding across parts of Washington and California.

WHAT IS AN ATMOSPHERIC RIVER?

While recent storms have brought necessary snow to the Cascade and Sierra mountain ranges, the wet conditions have also contributed to deadly avalanches.

Weather whiplash for Southeast

A shocking return to the cold will be the most noticeable feature of this weather pattern shift for most. 

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Since the New Year, most of the Lower 48 have enjoyed temperatures 5-10 degrees above average.

Weather whiplash for Atlanta and other parts of the Southeast this week.
(FOX Weather)

 

After Atlanta reaches 60 degrees Tuesday, low temperatures across parts of the Southeast will plummet into the 20s by Thursday morning, marking the beginning of several weeks of winter chill for the eastern half of the country.


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