Good Tuesday, everyone. Coming off a very cold November, our below normal numbers continue here into the first week of December. This week will also feature a couple of weak systems, before a much stronger setup rolls in here early next week. There is now an increased push for bitterly cold air to engulf the country on several models at the same time.

Highs today won’t get out of the 30s for many in central and eastern Kentucky. Most folks forget that normal highs this time of year are still in the upper 40s to around 50.

Gusty winds will make it feel like the 20s for much of the day and a few snow showers and flurries will still be around in the east early on. There’s a very weak system dropping in from the northwest later today, but this looks mainly dry. That said, there’s an outside chance for a brief rain or snow shower late today.

Here’s regional radar to keep you company…

Our next system arrives Thursday night and Friday and is a chilly, light shower maker…

That’s a nice shot of cold coming in behind that for Friday night and Saturday.

That brings us to early next week and a setup that’s getting more and more interesting. The models are now really keying on a severe arctic air outbreak heading into the United States. If the models are correct, you will start hearing the term Polar Vortex being thrown around. Here’s why…

That’s some major blocking forcing that lobe of the PV to drop into southern Canada and the northern part of the country. Record early season cold could be noted across parts of the country if that verifies.

Around here, the introduction to this comes in the form of a cold front with plenty of heavy rain on Monday. That front may slow down with waves of low pressure along it or, if the PV is really flexing muscle, push through with a true arctic surge with snow behind it.

That’s what the GFS is suggesting…

The EURO isn’t too dissimilar, but is slower with the first front and that allows the arctic air to overspread more east to west. In turn, this  could keep snowmakers traversing the southern edge of this. I’ve got the big view of the Euro to give you the full scene…

I will update things later on, so check back. Until then, have a good one and take care.