A strange late-May weather pattern is taking shape across the United States, and meteorologist Max Schuster says it could reshape the country’s storm risks, temperature swings, and even bring rare snow to parts of the Northeast as the calendar turns toward June.
In a new forecast on Max Velocity – Severe Weather Center, Schuster said a large omega block is taking control of the jet stream, forcing storms to move around the edges of the pattern instead of sweeping cleanly across the country in a more typical spring setup.
That matters because May is usually one of the most active severe weather months of the year, especially across the Plains. But according to Schuster, this pattern is creating a strange split in the atmosphere, with some areas still seeing severe storms while other regions sit under a colder and quieter setup.
“This is big,” Schuster said as he explained the unusual data, noting that the next several days will bring not only severe weather chances, but also a rare late-season snow signal in the Northeast.
An Omega Block Is Changing The Pattern
Schuster said the key feature is an omega block, a weather pattern that forms when a ridge of high pressure becomes trapped between two low-pressure systems. In this case, he pointed to a large low along the West Coast, a ridge trying to build over the Great Plains, and another low-pressure system over Canada.
That setup is important because it slows everything down. Instead of storm systems quickly crossing the Rockies and moving through the central United States, the West Coast low is expected to stay stubbornly in place.
Schuster said that will keep the most organized severe weather outbreaks limited for now, but it will not remove the risk entirely. Smaller, more localized severe weather events may still develop around the edges of the block, especially where pockets of moisture, instability, and weak disturbances line up at the right time.
This is the kind of pattern that can be frustrating for forecasters and the public alike. It does not always produce one clean, obvious threat zone several days in advance. Instead, it can create scattered trouble spots that become clearer only as short-range data improves.
Severe Weather Shifts Toward The Edges
Looking ahead, Schuster said severe weather chances will continue in parts of the East Coast, the High Plains, the Pacific Northwest, and the southern Plains, though the exact threat changes from day to day.
For Thursday, he described the severe weather risk as fairly low overall, but he said the Pacific Northwest could see a marginal threat, which is not something that happens often. The main concern there would be isolated damaging wind gusts, with a few stronger storms possible in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho.
Farther south, Schuster said Oklahoma and Texas should not ignore the possibility of another hail-producing storm, even if the broad severe weather outlook is not especially aggressive. He noted that the Dallas-Fort Worth area has seen quarter- to half-dollar-size hail storms on multiple recent days, and he would not rule out another similar event.
By Friday, Schuster said attention may turn back toward the High Plains and Montana, where damaging winds and hail could be the main concerns. He also said Friday into Saturday deserves attention across parts of Colorado into North Dakota, where he would not rule out a tornado event if the stubborn western low begins lifting north in the right way.
That kind of language is careful but important. Schuster is not calling for a guaranteed outbreak, but he is flagging the ingredients as something worth watching closely.
Flooding Remains A Concern In Saturated Areas
While tornadoes and hail often grab the most attention, Schuster also warned that repeated rainfall could create flooding problems in parts of the country that have already been soaked.
He pointed to two areas with higher flooding potential: one from Pittsburgh back toward Indianapolis, and another from Houston toward New Orleans. After that, he said isolated flash flooding could extend from Oklahoma City and Kansas back into the Southeast, with the threat shifting more toward the Southeast by Friday.
Schuster said the rainfall itself is not necessarily bad news, especially for areas that need moisture. But he stressed that when heavy rain falls quickly on saturated ground, flash flooding can develop faster than people expect.
He referenced the recent flash flood emergency in Hattiesburg as an example of what can happen when soils are already loaded with water and another round of storms moves through.
This is one of the more useful parts of the forecast because it puts the risk in human terms. A few inches of rain may not sound extreme on paper, but if drainage systems are already stressed and creeks are running high, the same storm can become dangerous much faster.
Rare Snow Could Reach The Northeast
The strangest part of Schuster’s forecast may be the possibility of snow in the Northeast near the end of May and into the weekend.
Schuster said a small low-pressure system is forecast to move across New England on Saturday, and as it moves offshore, colder air from Canada could spill southward behind it. That could allow snow to fall in parts of northern New England, especially around northwestern Maine, Berlin, New Hampshire, and Mount Washington.
He made clear that he is not forecasting a major winter storm. Still, he said some locations could see a coating of snow or at least flakes, while higher elevations may pick up a few inches depending on how the setup evolves.
According to Schuster, the European model was already showing snow potential in northwestern Maine and around Mount Washington. He said the signal may grow or shift as higher-resolution models come into range.
For late May, even a limited snow event is unusual enough to stand out. It is not unheard of in higher terrain, but the combination of snow chances, severe weather pockets, Gulf Coast rainfall, and early June chill makes this pattern feel especially odd.
Temperatures Could Run Far Below Average
Schuster said the reason snow is even on the table is the strength of the cold shot expected in New England.
He said temperatures could run 20 to 30 degrees below average in parts of the region this weekend, including areas around Berlin and Lincoln. Even farther south, including near Nashua and Boston, temperatures could be 20 to 25 degrees below average.
That cold air will not cover the entire country evenly. Schuster said parts of the northern Plains and Canada will be much warmer than average, with places like Minneapolis, Fargo, and Winnipeg running 10 to 20 degrees above normal, while parts of Canada deal with an even stronger heat wave.
That split is another signature of the blocked pattern. One part of the continent can feel more like early spring while another feels closer to summer, and the transition zones between those air masses can become active storm areas.
Schuster said the Climate Prediction Center’s outlook also supports below-average temperatures from southern New England back into the southern Plains over the next 6 to 10 days, with the 8-to-14-day outlook still favoring cooler conditions along the Gulf Coast.
Oklahoma’s Unusually Quiet May
One of the most striking details in Schuster’s forecast involved Oklahoma.
He said Oklahoma has reported zero tornadoes so far this month, and if that holds through the end of May, it would be the first time since 2005 that the state finished May without a tornado report.
For a state so closely associated with peak spring severe weather, that is a remarkable statistic. Schuster called it “absolutely wild,” especially because the broader national pattern has still produced storms, rain, and localized hazards elsewhere.
This does not mean severe weather season is over, and Schuster made clear that heat should eventually return by the second week of June, likely helping spark more storm chances. But for now, the country appears to be entering a blocked and unusual pattern where the weather does not behave like a classic late-May setup.
That may be the real takeaway from Schuster’s forecast. The atmosphere is not quiet everywhere, but it is no longer moving in a familiar rhythm. Storms are forming around the edges, cold air is digging unusually far south, the Northeast may see rare flakes, and parts of tornado country are ending May in a way that almost no one expected.
For people in the affected regions, the forecast is less about one single storm and more about staying alert to a pattern that can produce surprises. As Schuster put it, the next week or two may be “very interesting,” and the newest data suggests the country is already entering that strange new phase.
Mark grew up in the heart of Texas, where tornadoes and extreme weather were a part of life. His early experiences sparked a fascination with emergency preparedness and homesteading. A father of three, Mark is dedicated to teaching families how to be self-sufficient, with a focus on food storage, DIY projects, and energy independence. His writing empowers everyday people to take small steps toward greater self-reliance without feeling overwhelmed.
