Today's Weather & Forecast Updates

A record-breaking 81.8 million Americans are expected to travel at least 50 miles for Thanksgiving, according to travel company AAA, a 1.6 million person increase over last year.

Across the Central and Eastern US, wetter-than-average conditions are expected while much of the East will see above-average temperatures. The opposite is expected in the West, as California and the Northwest will likely face below-average temperatures through the end of the month.

A deadly atmospheric river has slammed California with days of heavy rain, strong wind gusts and rough surf. The storm system has brought several months' worth of rain to Southern California in the span of just a few days.

An early winter preview is forecast for the Upper Midwest, the Ohio Valley and the Northeast next week, as a strong dip in the polar jet stream is expected to plunge temperatures anywhere from 10-20 degrees below average for more than 200 million Americans.

Further tropical development is unlikely this hurricane season. A wintertime weather pattern has settled over the Gulf, the Caribbean, and the tropical Atlantic. Hostile upper-level winds and dry air blanket the tropical zone.

La Niña winter has arrived ahead of schedule as a dangerous lake-effect snowstorm moved through the eastern Great Lakes, creating brief periods of whiteout travel conditions, as Chicago and other parts of the Midwest and Northeast saw their first snow of the season.