Chicago Will Be Colder Than Parts of Antarctica This Week

Chicago is preparing for life-threatening cold temperatures this week as a polar vortex grips the Midwest. Temperatures are expected to stay below -13°F all through Wednesday, January 30, making the Windy City colder than the South Pole in Antarctica, which will see highs of -4°F that same day, CBS Chicago reports.

The Midwest is known for its brutal winters, but the first month of 2019 is already shaping up to be one of the coldest months in the region's history. On Wednesday, thermometers could read as low as -20°F, which would be a record low temperature for January 30 in Chicago. It's also in the running to be the second-coldest day ever for the city, coming behind January 20, 1985, which brought lows of -27°F.

Wind chill will make the historic temperatures even more extreme. Gusts could potentially make it feel as cold -50°F outside, prompting safety officials to put a wind chill advisory into effect early Tuesday morning. At 6 p.m. Tuesday, the advisory will be upgraded to a wind chill warning which will last until noon on Thursday. The Chicago public school system has already canceled all classes for January 30, and in Wisconsin, Governor Tony Evers has declared a state of emergency.

This week's weather isn't just cold by Midwest standards. Barrow (Utqiaġvik), Alaska; Oslo, Norway; and even parts of Siberia and the Yukon are all expected to see high temperatures above that of Chicago's on January 30.