In the wake of a winter storm that blanketed numerous U.S. states with snow and ice, unusually low temperatures continued to grip a large swath of the nation east of the Rockies in late January 2026. The cold spell was notable for severity, longevity, and geographic scope.
This animation depicts surface air temperatures across part of the Northern Hemisphere, including North America, from January 21 to 29. It combines satellite observations with temperatures calculated by a version of the Goddard Earth Observing System (GEOS) global model, which uses mathematical equations to simulate physical processes in the atmosphere.
Dark blue areas indicate the lowest surface air temperatures. The brief pulses show daily warming and cooling, while the broader pattern reveals cold air spreading south and east and lingering through much of the week.
According to the National Weather Service (NWS), the surge of Arctic air pushed deep into the United States on January 22, ushering in a period of low temperatures and harsh wind chills. The cold coincided with a jet of moisture to produce significant accumulations of snow and ice spanning from the U.S. Southwest to New England.
In the days after the storm, dangerously cold weather persisted. In the Midwest, for example, the temperature in Alliance, Nebraska, dropped to minus 26 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 32 degrees Celsius) on January 24, the lowest daily minimum temperature for that date on record, according to preliminary NWS reports. In the South, an extreme cold warning was in effect in south-central T …