The next major issue for the U.S. is an arctic outbreak scheduled to arrive across the northern Great Plains Wednesday night, according to the just arrived 12Z GFS. On Thursday, the arctic boundary shifts southward reaching Des Moines to Chicago early evening, accelerating southward Thursday night to northwest Texas Friday morning and eastward across Arkansas to the Ohio Valley. By Friday afternoon, the arctic air is filtering through New England and into the northern Mid-Atlantic region southwestward to northern Texas.

The ECM 30-day Madden Julian oscillation forecast indicates a phase_6 to phase_7 shift with intensity the second half of January followed by a phase_8 to phase_1 shift the first half of February. The phase_8 to phase_1 shift is eastward through the longitudes of the Americas and represents a hot and dry correlation to Australia climate.