🔗 Share this article Prolonged Chill Envelops Canada as US Records Hottest Christmas Ever. A prolonged deep freeze has enveloped a bitter and extended period of frigid weather, with temperatures hovering from 20 to 40 degrees below zero for an extended duration. This week, the Yukon community of Braeburn saw the mercury drop to -55.7C, representing its most frigid December day in nearly five decades. Prolonged Freeze of Extreme Cold In addition, the locales of Mayo and Dawson suffered through sixteen nights in a row dipping under the minus 40 Celsius threshold, with Mayo experiencing a low of -50.4C on Monday. The capital, Whitehorse, likewise saw ten separate nights when temperatures dropped below -30C. This Arctic air mass pushed further southward through Christmas week. On Christmas Day, overnight temperatures in Edmonton fell below -28C. Boxing Day was expected to bring lows of at least -20C through a wide swath, encompassing cities from Edmonton to Quebec. Forecast to Persist into the New Year This harsh winter weather is expected to continue through the start of January. There are warnings of possible electrical grid strain in Yukon territory over the next several days, as the system endures record-high pressure from peak power usage levels. The prolonged chill has been caused by a stationary polar vortex across the northern part of the continent this month, enabling a surge of icy Arctic winds to descend. In the coming week, forecasts indicate this cold air will pull back northward gradually, enabling milder Pacific air to move across the US and into parts of southern Canada. Pronounced Disparity Compared to Stateside Temperatures Meanwhile, in a dramatic contrast, areas of the United States saw the hottest December 25th in their history as readings skyrocketed 15 to 30 degrees Celsius above normal. Across wide regions, the atmosphere was more akin to late spring rather than the end of December. Several states set Christmas Day temperature records. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, reached 25 degrees Celsius on Christmas, exceeding the old record of 22C from 1982. Cities including Austin and Dallas, in Texas, and Charlotte, North Carolina similarly saw thermometers rise past the 25C mark. High-Pressure System Sustains High Temperatures Warmer-than-normal conditions are forecast to last for the remainder of the week and beyond, with unseasonable heat forecast to sweep through the American Southeast soon. The unseasonable temperatures are powered by a strong upper-level ridge stretching from the southwestern deserts northward and eastward, which generates a heat-dome phenomenon. This pattern establishes a broad area of high pressure over a large portion of North America, effectively capping warm air at lower altitudes. Sinking atmospheric air undergoes compression and additional heating, fostering the buildup of exceptional warmth.