As the rest of the nation shivers, Phoenix enjoys a warmup. What's going on?
Western New York is under winter weather travel bans, record-breaking low temperatures plague the northern plains, blizzard conditions are hitting Chicago and millions of Texans were warned to conserve energy against the frigid temperatures to avoid a repeat of winter 2021, when millions of people suffered power outages.
In Oregon, more than 80,000 people are still without power — and heat — and at least four have been killed. A Utah snowmobiler was struck and killed by a semitrailer on Sunday night after nearly 4 feet of snow piled up. Windchill exceeded minus 40 degrees in Montana.
And Nashville received its first snow storm of 2024, with "dangerously low" temperatures, according to to the Nashville Weather Service's statement on social media. The temperatures there are not expected to climb above freezing until Thursday.
The entirety of the United States seems to be experiencing a cold snap — almost. Phoenix is expected to climb back into the low- to mid-70s late this week, into the weekend. What's going on?
According to National Weather Service Phoenix meteorologist Matt Salerno, the answer is simple: It all has to do with a pattern of high pressure.
“Much of the interior of the United States is very cold right now because of an outbreak of polar, arctic air that came down into the plains,” said Salerno. “But for us here, we’ve been enjoying much milder temperatures, and that's just due to the overall pattern of warm air building underneath a ridge of high pressure, keeping our temperatures near normal for this time of year.”
The numbers tell the story: Around 1 p.m. Tuesday, the temperature at Sky Harbor International Airport was 66 degrees. In Chicago at the same time, the thermometer read 3 degrees.
While metro Phoenix may not experience the freezing temperatures and high winds that have turned deadly in places like Oregon, the Valley has seen its share of low temperatures in recent days.
The low temperature last Tuesday was 35 degrees, with reports of below-freezing readings in the outer suburbs. That followed a high the day before of 54 degrees, 13 degrees below normal and the lowest maximum of the week. Some places in northern Scottsdale even saw snow.
The latest forecast calls for high temperatures reaching 76 degrees by Friday, nearly 20 degrees higher than last week, with a low Saturday of 54 degrees — the same as last Monday's high.
Another pattern change will occur after that, according to Salerno, and the ridge of high pressure will slide off to the east, leaving a trough of low pressure over the west coast. This trough has high potential of moisture, bringing rain and a slight dip in temperatures. The best chance of rain across the Valley is Sunday going through Tuesday.
Caralin Nunes writes about weather and related topics for The Arizona Republic and azcentral. Email her with story tips at caralin.nunes@arizonarepublic.com.
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Phoenix is not freezing, but there may be some rain coming
