Amazing Facts About Cold Fronts

Sam Montana
Cold fronts can cause amazing temperature and weather changes and also be a danger to your health.
Cold fronts that move south into the central United States can cause amazing weather changes and even
be life threatening. These intense cold fronts during the winter months have names like Blue Norther,
Alberta Clipper, Alaska Blaster, Siberian Express and Saskatchewan Screamer.

Cold Fronts Explained

During the United States winter, very cold air can accumulate to the north in Alaska and Canada and will
eventually slide south. These intense cold fronts usually slide south between the eastern slopes of the
Rocky Mountains and the central high plains all the way south to Mexico. A cold front is a difference in air
masses with cold air behind the cold front and warmer air in front of the approaching cold front with
normally a southwesterly wind.
When a cold front passes, the barometer will usually start to rise rapidly along with a shift in wind direction
out of the north. High pressure will be on the back side or behind the cold front and many times, the
higher the barometric pressure, the colder the air can be and the center of the high pressure is usually
where the coldest temperatures occur. The temperature and weather changes can be dramatic and
amazing as a cold front passes your location.
You can see and feel the weather change when a cold front approaches. As you sit in the sun basking in
warm temperatures, you can look to your north and see a billowing cloud of dust and clouds moving
towards you. When the cold front gets closer, you can smell the air change and the wind will start to shift.
As the intense cold front passes your area, the temperature will drop rapidly and a heavy burst of snow
and wind can result in blizzard conditions after the cold front passes.

The Blue Norther of 1911

There is a saying in Texas that claims, The only thing between the Arctic Circle and Texas is a barbed
wire fence. And when a Blue Norther moves south, there can be amazing changes in temperature and
the weather.

On November 11, 1911, an intense cold front or Blue Norther dropped south into the United States
causing dramatic temperature drops and blizzard conditions. As is common ahead of an approaching cold
front, the temperatures were warm. In Kansas City, Missouri, the high temperature for the afternoon was
a balmy 76 F (24 C). Within an hour of the cold front passing, the temperature dropped to 45 F (7 C).
By midnight, the temperature had fallen to 11 F (-12 C), which is a 65 degree temperature drop in just
10 hours. Temperature drops of 50 degrees within an hour were common throughout the area.
This Blue Norther brought even more extreme weather to the northern tier of states as nine tornadoes
were reported in Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana and Michigan. An F4 tornado struck the town of Janesville,
Wisconsin, killing nine people and within a couple of hours the area was then hit with a blizzard and the
temperature falling to 0 F (-18 C).
The intense cold front also affected the western High Plains, where in Denver, Colorado, the temperature
dropped 68 degrees from a high of 66 F (19 C) to a low of -2 F (-19 C) the next morning. One of the
largest temperature drops occurred in Jefferson City, Missouri, where the temperature fell 71 degrees
from a high of 80 F (27 C) to a low of 9 F (-13 C) the next morning. This cold front was so intense that
many cities actually set record highs and record lows in the same 24-hour period.

Cold front with dust approaching Lubbock, Texas

NOAA

The 1989 Alaska Blaster

During January 1989, bitterly cold air had been pooling in Alaska and was started to sag south towards
the lower United States. Record temperatures in Alaska were as cold as -76 F below zero. High pressure
or high barometric readings are associated with these severe cold outbreaks and the 1989 cold wave was
no exception. The highest barometric reading ever recording in North American occurred during this cold
wave in Alaska with a reading of 31.85 inches.

By February 1st, this bitter cold air sank into the United States and was called the Alaska Blaster,
dropping temperatures by 70 degrees or more. When the cold front went through Valentine, Nebraska,
the temperature dropped 33 degrees in one hour and from 70 F (21 C) degrees to 0 F (-18 C) in just
12 hours.
Denver, Colorado saw temperatures stay below zero for 69 straight hours and a number of people being
treated for hypothermia and frostbite including one person that died from hypothermia. As usually
happens, when the cold pool of air drained out of Alaska, their temperatures rose by 50 degrees and
became warmer than many places in the lower United States. The cold wave eventually moved east with
the cold front as warm chinook winds blowing off of the Rocky Mountains warmed Denver from a low of 24 F (-31 C) to 32 F (0 C) in just a couple of hours. Other rapid warm ups included Cheyenne,
Wyoming warming 75 degrees in two days and Scottsbluff, Nebraska warmed 84 degrees from a low of 42 F (-41 C) to a high of 42 F (5 C).

Cold front with cold high pressure behind the front.

Cold Fronts Can Be Dangerous

Intense cold fronts can cause rapid temperature drops and blizzard conditions to occur almost
immediately and are dangerous if you find yourself trapped outdoors walking or driving. I have been in a
number of these intense cold fronts including the 1989 Alaska Blaster.
The most memorable for me was in 1980, when I was outside working in the yard and the temperature
was in the 60s. Within two hours a cold front came through and the temperature dropped into the teens
with blizzard conditions. The National Weather Service issued a bulletin that said an extremely severe
blizzard was occurring and all roads were closed. The temperature had actually dropped from the 60s
down to a wind chill temperature of -40 F in just a couple of hours. The National Guard was called out to
rescue thousands of stranded motorists throughout the area before people froze to death in their cars.

Cold Front Conclusion

As you can see, intense cold fronts can cause dramatic and rapid temperature and weather changes that
can be dangerous. Knowing when a cold front is coming into your area is important and the weather
service is getting better at timing these cold fronts. Even if you only drive to work every day, you should
carry a winter survival kit in your car since these intense cold fronts can cause you to be stranded even
between your home and your job.
Copyright November 2011 Sam Montana
Resources
The Blue Norther of 1911 - Kansas City NWS
Alaska Blaster article
Denver NWS weather history