Every time arctic air drops south, and temperatures plummet well below zero, social media lights up with a scary (and slightly cinematic) rumor called " exploding trees ."

John Seiler was strolling across Virginia Tech’s campus with his students Thursday morning when something stopped them in their tracks: a sweet cherry tree with an unusual jagged scar running along it...

The freezing front is set to descend on the US on Friday evening, with up to 172 million people forecast to be affected by the snow, ice and wind chills.