Snow, ice, wind and plunging temperatures creating dangerous travel conditions from central and southern states all the way to the East Coast

The polar vortex of ultra-cold air usually spins around the North Pole. People in the US, Europe and Asia experience its intense cold when the vortex escapes and plunges southward, as in the current conditions.

Studies show a fast-warming Arctic is partly to blame for the increasing frequency of the polar vortex extending its icy grip.

A major winter blast of snow, ice, wind and plunging temperatures in the US created dangerous travel conditions from central and southern states all the way to the East Coast early Monday, amid warnings some areas could face the heaviest snow in a decade.