The December 1989 United States cold wave was a series of cold waves into the central and eastern United States from mid-December 1989 through Christmas. On December 21–23, a massive high pressure area pushed many areas into record lows. On the morning of the 22nd, Scottsbluff, Nebraska, experienced −42 °F (−41 °C). The next morning, the front pushed temperatures in Houston down to 7 °F (−14 °C), the 2nd coldest since 1889. On the 24th Miami airport (inland) had a low of 31 °F (−1 °C), and on the 25th, the low was 30 °F (−1 °C), and Key West had its 4th lowest temperature on record with a low of 44 °F (7 °C). The wave extended all the way into Mexico's Lower Rio Grande Valley, resulting in tens of millions of dollars in damage to the agricultural sector. The December cold wave was actually the second of the year, after a February cold wave had extended into Texas.

Scottsbluff is a city in Scotts Bluff County, Nebraska, United States, in the Great Plains region. The population was 14,436 at the 2020 census. Scottsbluff is the largest city in the Nebraska Panhandle, and the 13th-most-populous city in Nebraska.