Will the ice, bitter arctic cold reach here?

A super-strong arctic high pressure system is blasting its way into the central part of the United States today, helping set the stage for what could be a crippling ice storm in parts of Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri and Tennessee.

Temperatures will struggle to get above freezing Friday in Dallas, and places like Austin and San Antonio will be in the mid 30s for most of the day.  Truly frigid weather is predicted for areas farther north.

Often, such arctic air masses push eastward and eventually cover the eastern part of the United States. But not always.

And it appears as if the Southeast might avoid the worst of the powerful cold this time around.

Some of that arctic air mass will seep into the Carolinas this weekend. You'll feel it Saturday, when temperatures tumble from around 60 degrees in the early-morning hours to the lower 40s by evening.

Planning to attend the ACC championship game Saturday night? Bring a heavy coat.

It'll be even worse Sunday, with temperatures near freezing during part of the day and a low pressure system bringing rain. This is when parts of the Charlotte region could experience freezing rain. Right now, it looks as if Charlotte won't see much in the way of glazing. But it could be a different story to the north, in places like Hickory and Statesville -- and especially Boone and other mountain locales.

Then the same cold front that pushes southward on Saturday will retreat northward late Sunday and early Monday as a warm front.

So guess what?  On Monday, we're back in the 60s, or at least near 60 degrees. In fact, there will be enough wind shear Monday (winds blowing from different directions at various levels of the atmosphere) that any thunderstorms developing along an approaching cold front could cause wind damage.  That front will bring another shot of cold air.

But we won't really get that cold next week, according to the computer models.  There probably will be a day or two with highs in the upper 40s, but it will be nothing like the 30-degree highs that cities to the west of us (at the same latitude) experience from the cold air mass.

So that's one system we might avoid.

It's a long winter, though.

We'll keep a close eye on this Sunday freezing rain scenario and let you know about any updates.