After one of the warmest Januaries on record, Mother Nature is ready to shock Upstate New York with a sub-zero start to February. After a month of ‘where is winter?’, our 40-degree days are switching to forty below this weekend.

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Despite the persistence of La Nina bringing warm and wet air closer to New York for the third year in a row, many predicted a “bone-chilling” winter. That’s showing up on Friday, with an Arctic plunge that has Upstate meteorologists already putting out warnings for the weekend.

After a relatively average week, the same winter wave that will give the Southern US an ice storm arrives in New York on Friday. There won’t be enough moisture in the air for sleet or snow, so it’ll only bring the cold and high winds. Highs across Upstate will be in the mid-teens on Friday, then the deep-freeze starts after the sun goes down.

According to Accuweather, Albany will drop to -9 degrees – close to that day’s historic record low of -13. 30mph wind gusts will make a bad situation in the Capital Region worse, with a ‘feels like’ temperature of -29. At that temperature, frostbite can occur in less than 15 minutes.

Up into the Adirondacks, Lake George won’t have to worry about the Ice Castles this weekend. The town is projected to hit -18 degrees, with a windchill almost to 40 below. Lake Placid’s actual temperature will be brutally cold at -31, and a feel of -39.

Saturday will see single digit highs, but temperatures at least should stay above zero. Albany is forecasted for a high of 9 and a low of 1. Temperatures return to seasonal averages on Monday and should hold throughout the rest of February. Stay safe this weekend!

The 12 Coldest Days On Record In Albany [RANKED]

Albany has the potential to be brutally cold in the winter. But most of the time, it is bearable and we deal with it - just wear extra layers right? But some days, even wearing all the thermal underwear in the world just is not enough to keep you warm. These are those types of days: the most brutal of the brutal, the 12 coldest days on record in Albany history since 1874 according to weather.gov.

Gallery Credit: Matty Jeff

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