The low temperatures put a strain on water mains, gas pipes and other critical infrastructure as public officials warned people to stay indoors and bundle up if venturing outside. Some public transit agencies reported delays on Friday morning, including New Jersey Transit, whose service was affected by ice buildup in the train tunnel under the Hudson River.
The weather-related term of the season was polar vortex. This time, the deep freeze is being credited to a phenomenon called the Siberian Express.Tim Morrin, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service, described a confluence of weather events.The jet stream is carrying air from the Arctic and Siberian regions south across the central and eastern parts of the United States — becoming, in a sense, an expressway for cold air.
That is not happening now because the ground is completely snowpacked along much of that expressway.The result is record low temperatures across the nation. Friday brought the coldest temperature ever recorded on this date, breaking a record set in 1950, when it was 7 degrees. New York City.The all-time low temperature in the city, however, is 15 degrees below zero, set on February 9, 1934, according to the National Weather Service.While that record seems quite safe, Morrin said New Yorkers should not expect relief anytime soon.
The forecast calls for a light snowfall on Saturday, which will then turn to an icy, rainy mix by Sunday morning. There will be a brief period of relative warmth, perhaps reaching 40 degrees, before the region is swept back into another cold snap. As temperatures dip back down into the low teens on Monday, that brief respite might prove a problem, as melting snow could freeze and make roads treacherous for the morning commute.
Some people found beauty in the cold, especially in the many images of usually flowing waters that were now frozen. From the fountain in Union Square to the stilled waters around Niagara Falls, photos of frozen waters appeared on Instagram and other social media outlets.
But the ice also posed a threat, as the officials at Bryant Park noted on the park's website.
Some people found beauty in the cold, especially in the many images of usually flowing waters that were now frozen. From the fountain in Union Square to the stilled waters around Niagara Falls, photos of frozen waters appeared on Instagram and other social media outlets.
But the ice also posed a threat, as the officials at Bryant Park noted on the park's website.
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