Saturday is the mildest day this weekend; update on the Monday snow
Temps dive again next Tuesday
It’s nice to be out of the arctic air as we start our weekend! Let’s look at the peaks and valleys of our temperatures over the next few days.
Temperature trends
Our average high is 29 degrees this time of year in the Twin Cities metro area. We’re shooting for a Saturday afternoon high in the middle 30s. Saturday highs reach the 30s across most of central and southern Minnesota plus western Wisconsin. Highs in the 20s are expected in roughly the northern third of Minnesota.
Sunday highs will be cooler, ranging from single digits in parts of the far north to 20s in southern Minnesota and western Wisconsin:
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Sunday afternoon wind chills range from slightly below zero in the far northwest to 20s in the far southeast:
Twin Cities metro area high temperatures are projected to reach the lower 30s Monday, then we see highs in the upper teens Tuesday and lower teens on Wednesday. Metro area highs reach the lower 20s Thursday and mid 30s on Friday.
Snow chances
Northeastern Minnesota and western Wisconsin may see some light snow showers at times this Saturday.
Most of the daylight hours of Sunday will be snow-free, although southern Minnesota may see a passing light snow shower or flurry, especially late morning and early afternoon. A more organized area of snow moves into northwestern Minnesota Sunday evening.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s North American Mesoscale forecast model shows the potential snow pattern Sunday and Sunday evening:
The snow expands across much of northern Minnesota and northwestern Wisconsin overnight Sunday night, and periods of snow are expected across most of Minnesota and western Wisconsin on Monday.
Here are the odds of 2 inches of snow and 4 inches of snow Sunday night through Monday:
You can hear updated weather information on the MPR network, and you’ll see updated weather info on the MPR News live weather blog.
Snow depths
If you have outdoor plans this weekend, you’ll be happy to know that there’s plenty of snow on the ground across most of Minnesota. Here’s the latest snow depth map, courtesy of the Minnesota State Climatology Office and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources:
Much of northern Minnesota has 18 inches or more of snow cover, and parts of the northeast have more than 30 inches of snow on the ground. I’ll bet that many cross-country skiers, sledders, snowboarders and snowmobilers will be having some fun this weekend.
The official Twin Cities snow depth was 8 inches this Saturday morning.
Programming note
You can hear my live weather updates on MPR News at 7:35 a.m., 9:35 a.m. and 4:35 p.m. each Saturday and Sunday.