12-28-2016
Sea surface temperatures currently represent a weak La Nina, which would be favorable for cold air intrusions into the U.S. The forecast AO pattern, or Arctic Oscillation Index, favors a steep drop into negative territory.
This alone signals that the East Coast will see brutal cold in January, however we need a bigger pool of warm water off of southern Alaska, and the La Nina to remain weak, in order to get the cold into the U.S.
