Will Michigan get another blizzard? Arctic air, lake-effect snow coming

• A weakened polar vortex is pushing frigid Arctic air towards the central and jap United States.
• Michigan will expertise its coldest temperatures this weekend, with some areas dipping beneath zero.
• Heavy lake impact snow is forecast for Michigan’s Higher Peninsula, with as much as 2 ft attainable in some areas.
• This chilly blast is anticipated to be short-lived, with temperatures returning to regular later within the month.

The northern US is bracing for bone-chilling chilly as a weakened polar vortex pushes Arctic air south.

The planet’s most excessive chilly air will rush into the central and jap United States this weekend “like a wrecking ball,” it stated Weather Trader meteorologist Ryan Maue in a post on X on December 9.

Maue known as it a “mega-dump of the textbook ‘Polar Vortex’ Western Canadian chilly.”

“Among the coldest, if not the coldest, temperatures all over the world will hit the central and jap U.S. this weekend and early subsequent week,” the spokesperson stated. climatologist Judah Cohena analysis scientist on the Massachusetts Institute of Expertise, in an e mail to USA TODAY.

“It additionally seems that the world’s most intensive and contiguous space of ​​below-normal temperatures will lengthen from Alaska to the jap US over the following week,” he stated.

Michigan has already skilled a number of days of report chilly because of this last weekend and in the early week.

However in gentle of excellent information for individuals who hate the frigid climate, this chilly blast could possibly be comparatively short-lived. Forecasts count on a return to extra typical winter temperatures later within the month and into the brand new 12 months, because the polar vortex retreats north – and La Niña returns to the fore.

How chilly do temperatures get in Michigan?

The coldest temperatures will arrive Saturday evening by Sunday morning, December 13-14, though temperatures will probably be noticeably colder from Friday morning, December 12.

Here’s a regional breakdown of anticipated low temperatures in a single day Sunday morning, December 14, 2025 in Michigan, primarily based on the Nationwide Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Higher Peninsula (UP)

• Northern UP (Ironwood, Marquette, Newberry): round minus 5 levels Fahrenheit to 16 levels, whereas inland areas are barely colder, close to zero to single digits beneath zero.
• Japanese UP (Sault Ste. Marie): round 5 levels.

Northern Decrease Peninsula:

• Close to Petoskey, Cheboygan, Alpena: 5-10 levels, with some inland pockets round zero to five levels.
• Alongside Lake Michigan (Traverse Metropolis): 8-10 levels.

Central Decrease Peninsula:

• Grand Rapids, Lansing, Mount Nice: 3-8 levels, with colder pockets nearer to rural areas inland (zero to five levels).

Southern Decrease Peninsula:

• Kalamazoo, Jackson, Detroit: 3-8 levels, with Detroit and southeast Michigan barely hotter, round 5-12 levels.
• Thumb Area (Dangerous Ax, Port Huron): 3-5 levels, very chilly for jap areas close to Lake Huron.

Excessive Western Michigan (close to the Lake Michigan shoreline):

• Muskegon, Ludington: 5-13 levels, considerably moderated by the affect of the lake.

General, the coldest locations are inland within the northern Decrease Peninsula and elements of the Higher Peninsula, the place temperatures dip beneath zero, whereas southeastern Michigan and the coastal areas alongside the lakes are barely milder however nonetheless very chilly.

Will Michigan get snow?

The Local weather Prediction Heart’s 72-hour snowfall outlook exhibits a variety of accumulations throughout Michigan from Thursday by Sunday, Dec. 11 by Dec. 14, with the heaviest totals remaining far north.

A lot of the Decrease Peninsula is anticipated to see little measurable snow, principally a dusting of as much as an inch or two from gentle, passing bands. Additional north, particularly nearer to the Nice Lakes, lake-enhanced snow will improve totals, however the actual focus of the storm system is on the Higher Peninsula, the place colder air and stronger lake impact bands will probably dominate the interval.

By 7 a.m. Friday, Dec. 12, the jap UP and northwestern Decrease Peninsula are anticipated to see the very best snow accumulations, starting from 1 to 4 inches, though native areas might even see greater snow accumulations, in response to the advisory and the NWS. Probabilistic precipitation portal. There will probably be no accumulation in the remainder of the state Thursday night.

Extra snow is anticipated to build up statewide on Friday, December 12. Snowfall will probably be heaviest on the northern UP shoreline, together with the Keweenaw Peninsula, and in northwestern Michigan alongside the Lake Michigan shoreline.

“Intervals of storms over the next five days with the most effective likelihood for gentle accumulations (lower than 0.5 inches) Friday night (Dec. 12),” the Detroit NWS stated at X on Dec. 11. “Under regular temperatures resume in the present day and proceed Friday. Arctic air has additional strengthened this weekend, resulting in sub-zero wind chills at instances.”

On Sunday, December 14, snow belt areas are anticipated to obtain 6 to 13 inches of snow. Within the UP, Munising is anticipated to see 9 inches of snow, presumably 13. Grand Marais is anticipated to see 8 inches of snow, and as much as 4 inches. Traverse Metropolis, within the Decrease Peninsula, and Copper Harbor, on the tip of the Keweenaw, might get 6 inches of snow by Dec. 14.

What’s the polar vortex?

The polar vortex is a swirling mass of frigid air excessive within the ambiance that usually circles the Arctic, in response to the Nationwide Climate Service. Situated within the stratosphere, it often retains the coldest air trapped close to the North Pole.

Opposite to what the outline suggests, a weakened polar vortex might deliver harsher winter climate to the US, whereas a powerful vortex will include Arctic air to the north, resulting in milder winter circumstances right here.

The way to see climate watches and warnings in Michigan

Present Situations: Michigan Doppler Climate Radar

Keep knowledgeable. Obtain climate alerts through SMS

Brandi D. Addison covers climate throughout the USA because the Climate Join Reporter for the USA TODAY Community. She will be reached at baddison@gannett.com. Find her on Facebook.