A major mid-month pattern change will sweep Canada
Winter may filter into Western Canada while folks across the East finally catch a break from the extreme cold of late
Winter is known to have some tricks up its sleeve, and one of those surprises is set to sweep across Canada in the days ahead.
The current pattern responsible for extreme cold across the East and spring-like temperatures in the West will break down by the middle of this month.
While this certainly isn’t the end of winter, it could spell some relief for communities that haven’t been able to shake the chill in weeks.
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This weekend will exemplify winter’s flair for drama with an extreme temperature gradient across Canada.
Pacific air flowing across the Rockies will cause temperatures to soar as much as 20 degrees above seasonal on the Prairies. Meanwhile, cities like Toronto will see lows below -20°C with even colder wind chill values.
Expect that temperature contrast to break heading into next week as a mid-month pattern change begins to unfold.
The upper-level pattern responsible for the bursts of extreme cold will finally relax, allowing milder air to spill into Eastern Canada.
Temperatures will trend toward the seasonal mark for a change, and may even climb above seasonal for a few days. It’s important to note that “seasonal” is still cold this time of year, and near- to above-seasonal readings can easily support high-impact winter weather.
Signals also point toward an active storm track pointing toward the eastern half of the country, with high-impact stateside storms potentially affecting the region.
If the pattern unfolds as expected, folks on the West Coast may finally have the opportunity to experience cooler weather as we see the upper-level ridging finally break down. Wintry conditions have been absent from places like Vancouver so far this season.
This change in the west may arrive with some much-needed alpine snowfall, which could also lead to travel impacts throughout the region.