A cold front moving across the southern tier of the U.S. this week will bring some chilly temperatures, including areas of frost for the first time this season.

At the end of October, many areas of the U.S. have already seen their first frost. Some areas in the far north saw freezing temperatures in early September while others in the Central Plains and Midwest have had it occur at various times throughout the month of October. The South is now looking to take its turn this week behind a strong cold front moving through the country.

The system responsible is not taking a traditional path across the U.S. Typically, we see a low-pressure system in the north with a front that sweeps across the country to its south. With a front moving into the Northern Plains on Monday, some might expect that front to then sweep across the country, bringing colder temperatures behind it.

However, this one is different. A low-pressure center is forming in Oklahoma and Texas on Tuesday, October 28, on the southern end of the front. That will become the dominant low, which is forecast to move across the Southeast on Wednesday, October 29, then take a turn northeast, moving through the Northeast U.S. for Thursday and Friday, October 30 and 31. The old portion of the cold front to the low’s north has also stalled, which will produce showers from Minnesota into Missouri for Tuesday and Wednesday.

With the main low-pressure center of this system passing over the southern tier of the country, the cold air moving down the Plains will sweep down toward the Gulf and across the Southeast over the next few days, instead of pushing through much of the Midwest.

Image: Significantly cold air will rush across the southern tier of the U.S. over the next few days, being well below normal for late October and early November. Source: DTN

To go along with some breezy winds, where gusts could exceed 45 mph across Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas, the cold air will be the first real shot of fall-like air for many areas from Texas to Florida.

Morning low temperatures over the next few mornings may make it down to the freezing mark as far south as northern Texas on Wednesday and Thursday, and across northern Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia on Friday and possibly Saturday, November 1.

Portions of the Carolinas up through the Northeast will see frosty mornings for the first couple of days of November. However, freezing temperatures are not forecast within about 250 miles of the Gulf. These areas will have to wait for another burst of cold air to move through the country before they see frost.

Image: Median dates of the first fall frost are anywhere between the end of October and early November across the South and Southeast U.S. Source: Midwest Regional Climate Center

The date of the first frost is quite variable for the southern tier of the U.S. In some years it may come in late September and others possibly not until early December. But for the southern areas expected to see a risk of frost this week, the average date is typically around the end of October or early November, so the frost is right on time this year.