CHARLOTTE, N.C. (PINPOINT WEATHER) – As we close in on the weekend of Christmas, we are dealing with a weather wallop across the Continental U.S.!

The Carolinas are dealing with cold and miserable weather Thursday morning, with sleet and freezing rain in the mountains.

The arctic front moves through Friday morning with a dramatic temperature swing on the way to the Carolinas, with dangerous wind chills likely on the way for the mountains. Your Christmas weekend looks cold and dry, with one of the most frigid Christmas mornings in recent memory.

Next week looks to see our temperatures slowly rebound, with dry weather expected through the middle of next week.

As for your Thursday, it truly is a miserable morning for the region. Temperatures are in the 30s with on-and-off rain for the piedmont. We’ll see some sleet and freezing up in the mountains, with temperatures at or below freezing.

We should dry out later today before we see the next round of potential wet weather overnight as the front finally makes its way through the region early Friday morning.

Friday morning will mark the start of a very cold few days for the Carolinas, with temperatures that will fall dramatically behind the front from the low 50s to low 30s by lunchtime and even colder temperatures on the way during the afternoon hours.

Wind Chill Warnings are now in effect for our mountain counties where ‘feels-like’ temperatures as low as 30 degrees below zero are possible. Air temperatures will bottom out Christmas Eve morning in Charlotte’s low teens and below zero in the mountains.

Christmas weekend will be dry and cold — highs around freezing Christmas Eve, with Christmas morning, likely being in the teens for Charlotte.

As we look ahead to next week and the final days of 2022, temperatures will stay chilly, but we should see a slow rebound as we head through next week. Highs will be in the mid and upper 40s through Wednesday, with lows falling into the mid-20s, so winter coats will still be needed.

In the meantime, prepare for travel delays and rough weather before the arctic chill moves in.