Behind Record U.S. Cold Snap: Canadian Air and a Jet Stream Kink

Meteorologists forecast that temperatures may dip to nearly negative 40 degrees Fahrenheit (which is also negative 40 degrees Celsius)—negative 60 degrees with wind chill—in Minnesota and as far west as Montana.

"We haven't seen temperatures this low since January of 1994," says Jeff Masters, director of meteorology at the popular website Weather Underground.

States as far south as Alabama and Georgia will also experience chillier temperatures than they've seen in years.

"The atypical part of this weather pattern is some of these really cold temperatures are going to be pressing into parts of the country that don't typically see that magnitude of cold in early winter," said Robert Oravec, a lead forecaster with the National Weather Service in College Park, Maryland