Keep your extra blankets and heavy winter coats handy, New Jersey. You will be needing those for at least another week.
That’s the word from weather forecasters, who say the brutal Arctic blast — which is making early December feel like the heart of winter here in the Garden State and most of the Northeast region — will likely linger through the middle of the month.
There is some good news: Not every day will be as bitterly cold as it is on Monday. But daily temperatures are forecast to remain below average.
During the first seven days of December, temperatures have been running 6 to 8 degrees colder than normal. (That’s the average between the daily highs and daily lows.)
Temperatures in New Jersey during the first seven days of December have been averaging 6 to 8 degrees colder than normal. On Monday, Dec. 8, temps are expected to be 16 to 17 degrees below normal.Len Melisurgo | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
Newark Liberty International Airport has been averaging 34.6 degrees this month instead of its normal average of 41.2 degrees, according to data from the National Weather Service.
Down in Atlantic City, the daily average this month has been 35.4 degrees instead of 41.5 degrees.
And in the Trenton area of Central Jersey, the average temperature in December has been hovering at 32 degrees — 8 degrees colder than normal.
Making matters worse, Monday’s afternoon highs across most of the state are forecast to be stuck around 29 or 30 degrees. And overnight lows are expected to plummet into the low to mid-teens.
That’s 16 to 18 degrees colder than it should be in early December.
Our bitter cold temperatures in New Jersey are expected to continue for at least another week, according to the Climate Prediction Center, affiliated with the National Weather Service.Climate Prediction Center | NOAA
Forecasters say you can place the blame on the polar vortex, which has had a weaker circulation around the North Pole. When the vortex’s circulation is weaker, it allows frigid air to drift down into southern Canada and the northern and central United States.
When the polar vortex is tighter, the frigid Arctic air stays up north.
Shots of snow
In addition to the cold air this week, New Jersey has two shots of getting some light snow.
A storm system on Wednesday could bring 1 to 2 inches of snow across higher elevations in the state’s northern region before the frozen precipitation changes to rain, the National Weather Service said.
Another storm system could bring light snow to the Garden State Friday night into Saturday morning, but forecasters say it’s not a lock, with computer guidance models spitting out different scenarios.
Forecasters say they should have a better handle on that storm system in the next day or two.
Current weather radar
