The coldest air of the winter to date – by far – moved into Salem this week.

Windchills were close to zero yesterday morning and were expected to go below zero this morning, which will be the coldest day since last February.

The National Weather Service said Thursday morning's low temperature will be about 7 degrees with a wind chill of -2 degrees.

The windchill temperature on Wednesday morning was near 0, according to WHDH Chief Meteorlogist Pete Bouchard, because of "a steady (not strong) breeze."

"And although Thursday morning is colder, there isn't a lot of wind," he said. "Sun will dominate the short term forecast too and afternoon highs will be manageable: mid and upper 20s."

New Hampshire Homeland Security and Emergency Management posted a message on Facebook yesterday warning of temperatures in the -20 to -30 degree range in some northern parts of the state. The agency reminded residents to bundle up when venturing outdoors, not to leave pets outside, and also to be extra cautious when using supplemental heaters.

The cold will not last forever. Forecasts call for the cold weather to end by the weekend and temperatures to be back into the 40s by next week. Bouchard said the "the deep freeze will be short-lived."