INDIANAPOLIS - Severe thunderstorms in January? Yes, it's possible.

After spending several days in the deep freeze, central Indiana has warmed up as rain falls, and a spring-like weather pattern will set up on Tuesday.

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Warmth and a rich plume of moisture from the Gulf of Mexico will stream into Indiana on Tuesday, with Indianapolis flirting with a record high temperature.

But the weather will quickly change late in the day on Tuesday and early Wednesday morning as a strong cold front knifes through the warm, moist air.

Thunderstorms are expected to fire up ahead of the cold front, bringing the potential of severe weather to a wide swath of the Midwest.

The National Weather Service Storm Prediction Center has placed about half of Indiana in a slight risk area for severe weather.

Strong, damaging winds are the biggest threat, but large hail and an isolated tornado could also occur.

The risk area was expanded Monday afternoon to include Indianapolis.

The storms are expected to rumble overnight, ushering in much cooler temperatures.

Another Arctic air mass will settle into Indiana late in the week, with high temperatures by Friday expected to stay in the teens.

Stay with StormTeam 6 and TheIndyChannel.com for the latest severe weather information.