25 Photos That Show Just How Insanely Cold It Is In America Right Now

Extreme weather events are becoming more and more common, with records shattered down under during Australia's recent heatwave, and now, at the opposite end of the spectrum, the 'polar vortex' bearing down on Midwestern U.S.

The polar vortex is a band of strong winds, high up in the atmosphere that keeps bitterly cold air locked around the Arctic region. Sometimes, like this year, it can drift further south than usual and envelop highly populated areas of North America. Chigaco has been particularly hard hit, with its notoriously windy location on Lake Michigan bringing wind-chill temperatures down to record-breaking lows.

With much of the Midwest on lockdown and people urged to stay indoors, some people have been braving the plunging temperatures to take incredible images of the effects that the vortex is having on their daily lives. From exploding toilets to icy hairstyles, this list compiled by Bored Panda will give you chills just from looking at it!

#1 How Cold Is It In The Midwest? Bubbles Are Freezing

 

#2 My Brother Was On One Of The Few Flights Into Chicago This Morning. He Took This Photo Of Frozen Lake Michigan From The Plane

 

#3 Meanwhile In Minnesota. The Tank Exploded

 

#4 Lunch In Chicago Today. I Like Mine Al Dente

 

#5 After Two Days Of Freezing Rain, This Mold Came Out

 

#6 Eye Lashes On Fleek! Is That A Thing? Is This The New Winter Running Fashion Statement?

 

#7 Trying To Make The Most Of This -40 F Weather

 

#8 It's So Cold In Chicago They Set Commuter Train Tracks On Fire To Warm Them

 

#9 “Is Iowa Really That Cold?”

 

#10 Pray For The Homeless During This Time! Give To Your Local Shelters. Most Are At Full Capacity

 

#11 My Sister Opened Her Car Door In Chicago

 

#12 My God. We've Reached The Day After Tomorrow

 

#13 What Happens When You Blow Bubbles In A Freezing Weather

 

#14 A Firefighter After Working In The -40° Polar Vortex

 

#15 It's So Cold In Iowa That We Froze Antifreeze

 

#16 Freezing Our Pants Off In Minnesota

 

#17 Meanwhile In Wisconsin

 

#18 Landlord Decided To Turn Down The Heat Today In My MN Apartment As It Reached -40°

 

#19 When These Are The Inside Doors... You Know We Are Polar Vortexing

 

#20 Current Level Of Snow In Madison: One Whole Mingo

 

#21 Going To Daycare When It's -30 Outside

 

#22 Frozen Chicken Eggs

 

#23 You Know It's Cold When The Toilet Paper Is Frozen In The Outhouse

 

#24 Minnesota's Officers

 

#25 We Had A House Fire South Of Cameron Today. Our Chief Mitch Hansen Thought It Was A Splash Park