Everything to know about the storm hitting the Northeast

Approximately 7 million people are under storm watch in the Northeast U.S. as snowstorms from the Midwest move east. The snow began Friday morning in Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Maine, reports CNN.

According to the National Weather Service, "a winter storm will continue heavy snow and freezing rain across the Northeast through Friday. Another storm will develop over the Rockies and track east Friday into this weekend." There is also likely to be stormy weather into next week, per AccuWeather.

"The heaviest totals of over 6 inches should be confined to the Adirondacks and mountains of northern New England," reports AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Bill Deger. "Enough snow to shovel and plow from the Sunday-to-Monday storm is likely to fall from northern Pennsylvania and upstate New York to northern and central Maine."

Experts also say to expect road closures and power outages in some of the heavier areas. "If you must travel, make sure your car's winter emergency kit is ready," advised head of New Hampshire's Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management Robert Buxton.

This storm comes after a "storm drought" in the Northeast where many cities "have received measurable snowfall are reporting significant departures from normal." This is due to climate change making winters warmer. "It's obviously tough to get much in the way of snow when it is mild and warm," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Bob Larson explains.

The average temperatures in New York City, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C., have been eight degrees warmer than usual since the beginning of the month.