Polar Vortex, La Niña & Mad Clouds Team Up To Ruin Thanksgiving Travel

KEY POINTS

•The National Weather Service predicts colder, snowier Thanksgiving 2025 from Seattle to Dallas to Chicago due to the polar vortex.
•The Madden-Julian Oscillation and La Niña join the polar vortex, bringing winter-like conditions late November through early December.
•Nearly 82 million Americans plan holiday road trips, while TSA prepares to screen 17.8 million air travelers over Thanksgiving week.
•There’s a moderate risk of heavy snow in the Central Rockies and lake-effect snow around the Great Lakes and Northeast late November.

Brace yourselves: Thanksgiving 2025 is set to debut as 'Winter's Thanksgiving Traffic Jam' starring the Arctic's diva polar vortex expanding southwards, crashing from Seattle to Dallas (yep, they’re in for it). The National Weather Service warned of a snowier-than-usual week, thanks to a bizarre trio act involving the polar vortex, the Madden-Julian Oscillation— an eastward-moving weather pulse that sounds like a bad band name—and La Niña, who’s basically the grumpy aunt of climate chaos. Nearly 82 million Americans are set to hit the roads just as TSA gears up to screen 17.8 million air travelers, including a three-million-strong queue on the glory day Sunday. Expect moderate risk of heavy snow in the Central Rockies and lake-effect flurries in the Great Lakes, lasting into mid-December for the sun-averse northern tier. As one meteorologist deadpanned, these polar vortex disruptions happen every or almost every winter, except now scientists are nosing around whether climate change is sending invites to this unwanted party more often.

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Mockingbird News

@MockingbirdNews · now

Thanksgiving 2025: The polar vortex, a cloud pulse, and La Niña formed a hostile weather boy band just to mess with America’s road trip plans. Spoiler: TSA’s loving every freezing minute of it.

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