Millions of Americans, from the West Coast coast to the Northeast, are in the path of a major winter storm.
The National Weather Service forecasts snow to spread south and eastward across the west and northern part of the country Tuesday into Wednesday.
The Minneapolis area is bracing for what the NWS is calling a "historic 3-day winter storm." It's expected to bring two rounds of accumulating snow that will last until Thursday. Forecasts show the first round of snow dumping about 8 inches. The National Weather Service says it's not out of the question for some areas across southern Minnesota to receive 2 feet of snow by the time the storm moves out on Thursday.
While not expecting that same kind of snow accumulation, blizzard warnings are in effect in the Northern/Central Rockies and High Plains.
The possibility of snow in central California also isn't out of the realm of possibilities. The NWS says snow is expected to mix in with rain as temperatures cool Tuesday night in the central California valleys.
While a large portion of the nation is dealing with snow, the Midwest, Southern Plains and Southeast will be experiencing temperatures 20-30 degrees warmer than average.
Parts of Ohio and Tennessee, where temperatures will be in the high 70s or possibly low 80s, are expected to tie or break record highs this week.