The tatters of a severe tropical cyclone called Typhoon Nuri collided with cold air over Alaska's Aleutian Islands this past weekend, earning it the nickname "bomb cyclone" (akin to the conditions that set off Superstorm Sandy in 2012). The resulting burst of "violent energy," reports CNN, is expected to send much of the northern US into a frigid and frosty state, with temps likely to dip below zero in parts of Montana and snow likely to accumulate to a foot or higher in parts of Minnesota.
The weather is atypical, especially for this time of year, with Nuri becoming the strongest known Northern Pacific cyclone on record, reports the National Weather Service Ocean Prediction Center. While snow is supposed to blanket much of the Rockies, northern Plains, and Great Lakes, the cold front will peter out before reaching the Deep South and Southwest, which are expected to continue to feel autumnal. (Several months ago, the Farmers' Almanac predicted a cold season, particularly from the northern Plains to the Great Lakes.)