Powerful Winter Storm Kills At Least 22 Across US: Here's How Long 'Bomb Cyclone' Will Last

An arctic blast has brought extreme cold, heavy snow and intense wind across much of the US, just in time for the holidays. The frigid winter storm has killed at least 22 people and left lakhs of people without power and millions on edge about the possibility of Christmas Eve blackouts.

Power systems across the US were under strain due to rising demand for heat and storm-related damage to transmission lines. According to tracking site Poweroutage.us, at least 300,000 homes and businesses were without power as of Saturday evening, a sharp drop from 1.8 million customers who were without power earlier in the day.

Current view on Werhle Dr. from one of our Concord trucks who are out assisting our Harlem District. Please stay off of the roads, as there is still a driving ban countywide! Stranded vehicles make these terrible conditions even more difficult for our crews! pic.twitter.com/4nGtvKp35p

¡ª Erie County DPW (@ErieCountyDPW) December 24, 2022

The weather system, dubbed a ¡°bomb cyclone,¡± is disrupting travel and causing hazardous winter conditions. But, what is it?

What is 'bomb cyclone'?

A ¡°bomb cyclone¡± is created when the atmospheric pressure drops quickly in a strong storm. Pittsburgh, Charleston, S.C., and Washington, DC, were all expected to hit record lows for Christmas Eve. Fargo, ND., was forecast to be the coldest spot in the country on Christmas. The storm unleashed its full fury on Buffalo, New York, with hurricane-force winds causing whiteout conditions.

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How long will it last?

This weather system is expected to bring some major ¡°weather whiplash," said Judah Cohen, a winter storm expert for Atmospheric Environmental Research. The cold isn¡¯t going to stick around for long. After the dramatic plunge that will keep temperatures low for about a week, ¡°everything will snap back to normal,¡± Cohen said.

Shortly after Christmas, temperatures are expected to start to warm up again, moving from west to east. They are likely to remain near normal through the end of the year in most of the U.S.

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But, why does it happen?

It all started farther north, as frigid air collected over the snow-covered ground in the Arctic, Maue said. Then the jet stream ¡ª wobbling air currents in the middle and upper parts of the atmosphere ¡ª began pushing this cold pool down into the U.S.

As this arctic air is pushed into the warmer, moister air ahead of it, the system can quickly develop into serious weather ¡ª including what¡¯s known as a ¡°bomb cyclone," a fast-developing storm in which atmospheric pressure falls very quickly over 24 hours.

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These severe weather events usually form over bodies of water, which have lots of warmth and moisture to feed the storm, Maue said. But with the huge amount of cold air coming through, we could see a rare bomb cyclone forming over land.

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