Extreme weather whiplash: 50-degree temperature swings across the country

24-hour temperature change as of 8 a.m. EST Friday

A surge of springlike warmth greeted many areas across the United States this past week, providing a break from the winter weather. The short-lived warmth was quickly erased by a dangerous storm that churned out tornadoes and record-breaking snow, sub-zero temperatures and even lower AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperatures. With another warmup settling into parts of the northern U.S. on Friday, residents are experiencing weather whiplash.

Jamestown, North Dakota, 100 miles east of the state capital of Bismarck, experienced a dramatic temperature increase Friday morning. The mercury was 12 degrees F below zero on Thursday morning, but temperatures increased 46 degrees by the start of the day Friday when the mercury reached 34 degrees F.

Sioux Falls, South Dakota, approached 50 degrees F on Friday afternoon, compared to a low temperature of only 3 degrees Thursday morning, a difference of 47 degrees over a day and a half.

In Nashville, Tennessee, residents didn't wake up to warmer weather, but in fact, much colder weather. A sharp cold front sliced through the region late Thursday night, sending temperatures below freezing. On Thursday morning, the mercury in Nashville reached 60 degrees but 24-hours later, on Friday morning, the mercury dropped to 28 degrees F, a temperature change of 32 degrees F in 24 hours.

The last day of 24-hour temperature changes shows a huge 50-degree rise in temperatures over the Northern Plains, a huge 50-degree drop around Arkansas, and a significant rise of 35 degrees in eastern North Carolina. (NOAA)

On Friday morning, the cold front was racing across the Eastern Seaboard, prompting severe thunderstorm warnings in Philadelphia, New York City and Long Island. Behind the severe thunderstorms was a blast of cold air, which sent temperatures tumbling.

In just one hour, the temperature dropped 23 degrees in Indiana, Pennsylvania, northeast of Pittsburgh. The mercury fell from 60.8 degrees F at 1 a.m. local time to 37.4 degrees F at 2 a.m., a plunge of 23.4 degrees.

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AccuWeather Meteorologist and Senior Weather Editor Jesse Ferrell ran the numbers and said this likely ties the record for the city.

"Since weather record-keeping started at the Indiana airport in 1998, Friday morning's drop ties the record one-hour temperature change recorded at that station," Ferrell said. "On July 26, 2012, the temperature dropped from 89.6 degrees F to 66.2 F in one hour, the same magnitude as last night's event. A temperature drop of this magnitude usually occurs between the months of May and September, which proves how unusual this temperature drop was."

Earlier this week, the same cold front that dramatically dropped temperatures in Pennsylvania Friday morning was responsible for falling temperatures in Pittsburg, Kansas. On Wednesday night, the temperature was 58 degrees F, but just 24 hours later, the temperature had fallen 47 degrees, sending the mercury down to a frigid 11 degrees F.

Warmer weather briefly greeted many residents from Atlanta to Boston on Friday morning, but that did not last long for either city. Temperatures around daybreak were 10-15 degrees higher when compared to the same time on Thursday morning in both locations, but after the cold front swept through late Friday morning, the temperatures continuously ticked downward, with the mercury settling into the low 40s F on Friday afternoon.

"We're getting closer to spring, and spring is a time of year that features wild swings in temperatures, especially early spring," said AccuWeather Expert Senior Meteorologist Bob Larson.

Unfortunately, this isn't the end of the temperature swings across the country. The Upper Midwest will have a brief warmup on Sunday before returning to sub-zero temperatures early next week. The central U.S. will experience a warmup this weekend and early next week with temperatures nearing 70 degrees in Dallas, Texas and the mid- to upper 60s in Nashville, Tennessee.

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