Red-Faced, National Weather Service Regrets Tweet About Polar Vortex in July: UPDATED

Updated:

Oops. Mea culpa. The National Weather Service has apologized for calling a cold front moving in to the area early next week a Polar Vortex.

It will just be cooler, the red-faced weather folks said, according to a report in the Detroit Free Press. 

Weather Underground meteorology director Jeff Masters said that though the weather patterns causing the cooler temperatures are similar to the Polar Vortex that sent Michigan and much of the eastern half of the United States into a deep freeze last winter, the chilly air mass isn't coming directly from the Arctic, as it did last winter.

So relax and flip off the air conditioner.

Our earlier report:

This isn’t a joke. We wish it was. If you’re blocking the Polar Vortex of the teeth-chattering winter of our discontent, we don’t blame you. And while we take no pleasure in unblocking you, we think you should be warned, chillingly so.

“We have a blast of cold air coming down,” Phil Kurimski, senior meteorologist with the National Weather Service told the Detroit Free Press. “It’s bringing a cold air mass from the pole southward, a large cold trough.”

The Weather Channel says “this trough is very strong for mid-July, in the heart of the summer,” warned record cold temperatures are likely, and said it will feel more like football weather than pool weather.

Forecasts vary, but The Weather Channel is calling for highs ranging from 63 in the northern part of the lower peninsula to 69 in the south Tuesday.

The National Weather Service is a bit more optimistic, predicting a high of 71 for Tuesday in metro Detroit. Here’s the seven-day forecast:

Friday: Sunny, with a high near 80. Southeast wind around 6 mph.

Friday night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 66. South southeast wind around 6 mph.

Saturday: A chance of showers and thunderstorms after 4pm. Partly sunny, with a high near 83. South wind 5 to 11 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%.

Saturday Night: Showers and thunderstorms likely, mainly after 8pm. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 70. Southwest wind 9 to 13 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New rainfall amounts between a half and three quarters of an inch possible.

Sunday: A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 82. West southwest wind around 11 mph. Chance of precipitation is 40%.

Sunday Night: A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly cloudy, with a low around 67. Chance of precipitation is 30%.

Monday: A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 78. Chance of precipitation is 50%.

Monday Night: A chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 61.

Tuesday: A chance of showers. Partly sunny, with a high near 71.

Tuesday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 57.

Wednesday: A chance of showers. Partly sunny, with a high near 71.

Wednesday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 59.

Thursday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 75.