The middle of the work week is going to be a cold one for much of the U.S. However, this is just a preview of cold weather to come this weekend and next week. The Breakfast Brief is published daily, Monday through Friday, at 5:00 a.m. Eastern time.

The reinforcing shot of arctic air that arrived across the northern Plains Tuesday is spreading into the Ohio Valley and the East Coast today. Highs in the 20s will be found from Louisville to Boston. St. Louis, Chicago, and Columbus, Ohio, will not climb out of the teens.

In addition to the cold temperatures, the WeatherRadar shows a few lake-effect snow squalls rolling across the snow belts of the lower and eastern Great Lakes. A late-day clipper system will bring a burst of snow to the Upper Midwest too.

The South will be slightly milder, with highs in the 50s. A weak front over the Gulf of Mexico will edge northward, bringing showers into southern and eastern Texas and cloud cover over Florida and the central Gulf Coast.

The West will remain quiet, with bountiful sunshine and seasonable temperatures. The Mountain West, Great Basin, Rockies, Sierra and Cascades will be in the 30s and 40s. The Northwest and northern California will be in the 50s, while southern California and the Southwest will be in the 60s.

The WindRadar shows slightly lower winds across southern California, especially later on Wednesday. This will help firefighters battling the wildfires there.