Ahead of the polar vortex that will bring with it sub-zero temperatures to much of the eastern United States a widespread snow storm is slated to hit the east coast on Tuesday. Heavy snow will slam the mid-Atlantic from the Virginia/Washington D.C. area up the coast as far north as Boston.

According to a report from the National Weather Service (NWS), a wave of low pressure is developing along a strong Arctic front as it moves southward through the mid-Atlantic. From there it will develop into a strong surface low off the coast of New England.

The resulting weather will be a wide expanse of moderate to increasingly heavy snow spreading from the central Appalachians to southern New England along with the entire mid-Atlantic region.

Winter storm warnings and winter weather advisories are already in place in all of these areas. Several major cities, including Washington D.C., Baltimore, Philadelphia, New York City and Boston are expecting snowfall amounts ranging from six inches to up to a foot.

"The greatest totals are likely for southern New England," said D. Hamrick of the NWS. "It will be a winter wonderland for these areas."

AccuWeather.com reports that as the storm gains strength Tuesday night, blizzard conditions may develop in parts of Long Island, N.Y., southeastern New England and on Wednesday as the storm continues north into portions of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. Winter Weather Expert Brian Wimer has said that this could be the "biggest storm of the year" so far for many cities that will be hit with snow.

As the snow peters out on Wednesday in the U.S., arctic air will blast down from Canada, causing temperatures to drop throughout all of the eastern half of the country. The highs on Wednesday are expected to be 10-20 degrees below normal as far south as Miami.

Travel conditions will deteriorate throughout the day on Tuesday, with the snow causing slippery and dangerous conditions on roadways and the cancellation of thousands of flights into and out of the areas affected by this storm.

Motorists traveling along I-64, I-66, I-68, I-70, I-81 and I-95 are advised to use extreme caution while driving and should expect slow traffic.

In terms of air travel, half of almost all flights heading into the mid-Atlantic and Northeast have been cancelled or delayed. Between 30 and 40 percent of outgoing flights have been cancelled or delayed as well, according to flight-tracking service FlightAware.

LaGuardia Airport in New York is being hit the hardest in terms of cancelled and delayed flights, with 50 percent of outbound and 60 percent of inbound flights being affected. Other major hubs taking heavy air travel losses include Philadelphia International, Newark Liberty International, JFK and Baltimore/Washington International.

According to reports from ABC News, schools in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Connecticut, Virginia, West Virginia and Kentucky are sending students home early or have cancelled classes entirely on Tuesday. The federal government also closed all of its offices in Washington D.C. for the day.

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