NORTHERN UNITED STATES - The coldest air of the season paired with an active jet stream will see the northern half of the nation inundated with snow. Winter Storm Caly is set to blanket a more than 2,600-mile swath of the U.S. with snow. The Pacific Northwest, the Rockies, Plains, Midwest, and Northeast will all see snowfall into early next week.

The Pacific Northwest will be hit by what The Weather Channel is calling “an impressive arctic air mass.” According to the site, Winter Storm warnings have been issued for the Portland, Oregon metro area, and significant amounts of snow, sleet, and ice are expected to hit the city.

Because subfreezing air tends to be hard to dislodge, particularly in this region, precipitation is likely to start as snow and may change to freezing rain at lower elevations. The downpour and the threat of ice accumulation could lead to challenging travel conditions throughout the state of Oregon.

Snow will begin to fall across the northern Plains and upper Midwest on Saturday, and move throughout the weekend to hit the Great Lakes, the interior Northeast, and potentially the Ohio Valley. Major cities such as Detroit, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Buffalo, and Syracuse could be adversely affected.

By Monday, the storm will have spread across the Northeast, with the potential to drop wet snow on the busy Interstate-95 Boston-Washington corridor.

The snowstorm is not expected to be a prolific, heavy snow event, but up to six inches of snow could fall in some areas; a stretch of land from the upper Mississippi Valley to the southern Great Lakes and the interior Northeast.

For more on adverse weather conditions with the potential to affect the produce industry, stay tuned to AndNowUKnow.