The week, the majority of the United States will experience a deep freeze thanks to a Polar Vortex, which will bring a wave of cold air that normally spins in the atmosphere over the North Pole down into the Great Lakes. Meanwhile, a looming snowstorm is about to cause chaos for the deep South. Approximately one quarter of the country will wake up to sub-zero temperatures, and Wednesday might bring about literally the coldest day on record in Chicago, with a projected “high” of 14 below zero.

The National Weather Service in Des Moines, Iowa issued a chilling warning to residents (no pun intended) that the weather will be “the coldest air many of us will have ever experienced” and for people to “avoid taking deep breaths, and minimize talking,” while outdoors.

Temperatures in the Upper Midwest had already dipped below zero ahead of the Polar Vortex on Sunday morning, with International Falls, Minnesota breaking a half-century-long record at 45-below zero, but apparently, that’s just the tip of the iceberg (okay, pun maybe intended).

“Some locations in the Midwest will be below zero continuously for 48-72 hours,” according to AccuWeather meteorologist Mike Doll. But the worst is yet to come, Doll said. “I cannot stress how dangerously cold it will be,” he said. “An entire generation has gone by without experiencing this type of cold.”

The area from North Dakota to northern Illinois will likely be hit with the hardest cold, with plunging temperatures that can cause frostbite “in mere minutes.”

In other words, people are legitimately freaking out, and for good reason.

I don't use the phrase "POLAR VORTEX" very often, but holy moly! It's headed south next week and bringing dangerously cold temperatures with it!! These are the wind chill temps for next Wednesday & Thursday. @ABC7News pic.twitter.com/qoknMWhDTr — Bill Kelly (@ABC7BillKelly) January 24, 2019

The best polar vortex map ever is from 2014 but relevant today. pic.twitter.com/Z3Veg2bdzl — Matthew T. Hall (@SDuncovered) January 28, 2019

The result of this displacement of the #PolarVortex is obscene cold. The data continues to show -40F t -60F wind chill temperatures over the Northern US. In case you are curious, you can get frostbite within about 5 minutes exposure at that extreme. pic.twitter.com/lrbzMPWkM9 — Marc Weinberg (@MarcWeinbergWX) January 25, 2019

Wonderful way to visualize the polar vortex …

The features arrive from the Canadian Arctic — and sometimes they make it into the Lower 48

e.g. GFS (tropopause temperatures) pic.twitter.com/oEvyFdpLdw — Ryan Maue (@RyanMaue) January 25, 2019

School in Minnesota on Wednesday? I think not! Temperatures of -30˚F and wind chills of -50˚F? Downright dangerous. Call it a "#polarvortex day" ? pic.twitter.com/jgVeKhnkN2 — Ben Noll (@BenNollWeather) January 26, 2019

Polar Vortex sounds like the name of a really bad Steven Seagal movie that came out in like 1996 and still runs on basic cable for reasons no one understands — Brian Grubb (@briancgrubb) January 28, 2019

Stay safe, and stay indoors, everyone.