Record-breaking snowfall in the Midwest leaves Chicagoans preparing for harsh winter

This past Saturday, as Chicago hunkered down after Thanksgiving festivities, the city was battered with a historic snowfall across the region. The monumental flurry, which, according to the National Weather Service, saw an average of 8.4 inches fall across the city, set the record for the single largest November snowfall in Chicago’s history, beating out the previous record of 8 inches set over 70 years ago in 1951.

The blizzard came at a bad time for travelers making their way back from the holidays, as flight cancellations and dangerous roads made the weekend an extremely difficult transit period. On what the Transportation Security Administration had already expected to be one of its busiest weekends in history, O'Hare Airport alone saw 1300 flight cancellations on Saturday and another 300 on Sunday, as reported by Flightaware, causing chaos and delays across the country.

Another 1-3 inches are expected Monday night, and unfortunately for Chicagoans, the recent snowfall could be just the start of a long winter to come. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), an environmental phenomenon known as a marine heatwave may be the culprit, and could spell significantly lower temperatures and more snow for the Midwest throughout the season. The marine heatwave, which has become colloquially known as “The Blob”, comes as the result of unusually warm water temperatures creating a heat bubble that is expected to push cooler, arctic air into Chicago and the surrounding areas as it migrates across the U.S.

Read more on Chicago Star:

• Ho Ho Ho: where to find Santa in Chicago this holiday season

• Sparkling holiday on the lakefront: Navy Pier has it all

• Lyric Opera House scores big with Billie Corgan’s “Mellon Collie”

The NOAA also noted that the only other “Blob” of this size on record occurred in 2013-2014, a winter many Chicagoans will remember unfondly as another record-breaking year that saw the city get hit with 23 days of sub-zero temperatures and snowfall every other day.

So if you're in the Midwest, make sure you have your heavy coat ready, your shovel close at hand, and a good TV show with lots of seasons queued up to help survive this newest polar vortex!