Coldest U.S. Thanksgiving in 100 years? Blame Canada

Thursday, November 22, 2018, 3:57 PM - Hopefully everyone started thawing their turkeys early; this Thanksgiving is going down as one of the coldest on record in many of the U.S. Northeast's biggest cities. It's Arctic high pressure sinking down through the Great Lakes and over eastern North America that's bringing the coldest air of the season (so far) that's sparked extreme cold alerts in Torontoand has homeless shelters in Montrealstruggling, and unlike holiday travelers, that air didn't have to worry about any airport delays or traffic jams on its way south of the border.

It's not just the cold, either -- it's the wind chill. Strong winds from the northwest add a bite to the air, with bitter wind chills in the minus teens for most (and even colder for spots like the higher terrain of Upstate New York and northern New England).

The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade went on as scheduled, in spite of concerns over wind chills making it feel in like -15 at start time, making it the coldest weather in the parade's history.

According to the National Weather Service, New York City has only three Thanksgivings on record (dating back to 1870) when the high temperature didn't top -1ºC. The current coldest Turkey Day in the Big Apple was a bracing 26 Fahrenheit (about -3ºC), and that was back in November 1901. Boston, Philadelphia, and Burlington, Vermont, are also on track to set new records for their coldest Thanksgiving Day.

WATCH BELOW: WICKED WIND CHILL

BRISK BLACK FRIDAY

Those heading out for some early morning shopping will have to hope the hot deals will keep them warm, because the weather certainly isn't going to help. Friday morning temperatures will still be in the minus double-digits for most of the Northeast, with wind chill values in the minus teens near the coast, and colder inland.

Not quite ready to dive headfirst into the heart of winter? There's some good news ahead for the weekend. The Arctic high continues its slow shift to the northeast on Friday, with temperatures moderating on both sides of the border on Saturday and Sunday.

A DIFFERENT KIND OF BROKEN RECORD

Blasts of Arctic cold so early in the season might have us thinking fondly back to warmer days, but -- no matter what you might hear repeated on social media -- it's important not to confuse weather patterns and climate.

"Climate and weather are related, but they are not the same thing," explains The Weather Network's Chief Meteorologist Chris Scott. "The best way to understand the relationshipis to think of climate as the atmosphere's personality, and weather like it's mood. Your personality is shaped over years, it tends to change slowly and is the sum of all your moods – both the averages and the extremes. In the same way, climate change and global warming are measured over decades and centuries and reflect changes in the averages and the extremes of weather."

The fact is, the planet is warming.

"What we need is less blame and more work on making our future better," says Scott. "To start, we should all rise above connecting every bad weather system to the existence or absence of climate change.  We could do so much more by agreeing there is a problem, and tackling it together."

With files from Weather Network meteorologists Jaclyn Whittal and Chris Scott.

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