Winter Kicks Off With Back-to-Back Arctic Blasts and a Potential Bomb Cyclone

Winter is officially here, and it’s starting off with a bang.

A blast of Arctic air sent temperatures plummeting across the eastern U.S. over the weekend, and two more cold waves are likely on the way. Meanwhile, a large storm currently affecting the central U.S. is tracking eastward, and the frigid temps could help it rapidly intensify into a bomb cyclone.

As of Monday—the first day of meteorological winter—the National Weather Service (NWS) has issued winter weather advisories in 17 states from Oklahoma to New York, along with winter storm watches across much of New England. CNN meteorologists expect the storm to undergo bombogenesis—a pressure drop of at least 24 millibars in 24 hours—as it tracks up the East Coast, bringing the first widespread snow and ice of the season to par