Polar Vortex Felt as South as Atlanta

Grumble grumble Al Gore grumble

Record-setting cold stunned the Southeast on Tuesday as the chilly "polar vortex" parked over the northern Midwest extended eastward, prompting officials to cancel school and open emergency warming and homeless shelters in areas unaccustomed to sub-zero temperatures.

The Midwest freeze set in Monday, when subzero temperatures broke records in Chicago, at 16 degrees below zero and Fort Wayne, Ind., at minus 13. Oklahoma and Texas also saw record-setting cold, with wind chills of 40 below zero.