January was a month of extremes for the continental United States. Pretty much everywhere east of the Rockies endured unusually cold conditions, while most regions west of the range experienced record-breaking warmth (most notably in California, where a devastating drought recently extended into its 13th month).
https://gizmodo.com/theres-a-polar-vortex-sweeping-across-america-and-i-1494961441
https://gizmodo.com/californias-terrifying-drought-summed-up-in-two-satel-1506989095
According to Mashable,
The divide between East and West during January was the result of a buckle in the jet stream that rerouted Pacific storms north, into Canada, bypassing drought-ridden California, before opening the door to the Arctic refrigerator by steering upper level winds from north to south across the East.
For more, check out NOAA’s National Overview for January 2014.
