Sun-splashed Sunday and Monday; A peek at Thanksgiving weather
Mild end to November?
Our Sunday afternoon weather will be fine for outdoor activities. Winds today are much lighter than yesterday, and our afternoon high temps will be 10 to 14 degrees warmer than yesterday.
There will be plenty of sunshine across most of Minnesota. Parts of far northeastern Minnesota and northwestern Wisconsin will have a cloud/sun mix, with a stray flurry possible into early afternoon.
Sunday highs will range from 20s in northern and central Minnesota to 30s in the south. Our Twin Cities high in the lower 30s will feel great, even though it will be well shy of our average Nov. 20 high of 40 degrees.
Temperature trends
Monday highs will be mainly in the 20s, with 30s in the far south:
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Some spots in the metro area will touch 30.
Monday afternoon wind gusts will be less than 14 mph in most areas:
Forecast gusts are in knots, with 11 knots equal to 12.7 mph. Higher gusts are expected in far northeastern Minnesota and in the far southwest.
Monday afternoon wind chill temps (which are based on sustained winds, not wind gusts) will be mainly in the teens and lower 20s above zero.
Back to forecast high temps, Twin Cities metro area highs are projected to be in the mid-30s Tuesday, followed by upper 30s Wednesday then mid-30s Thursday and Friday. I should mention that Thanksgiving Day highs are expected to reach the 30s across most of Minnesota plus western Wisconsin.
We could see metro area highs in the 30s next weekend. Our average Twin Cities high temperature retreats to the mid-30s by the end of November. The NWS Climate Prediction Center shows a tendency for above-normal temps in much of Minnesota and Wisconsin for the period from Nov. 27 to Dec. 3:
Thanksgiving travel
Generally, good travel weather is expected this week. Far northern Minnesota could see some light snow late Monday night into early Tuesday.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s North American Mesoscale (NAM) forecast model shows the potential precipitation pattern from 9 p.m. Monday to 9 a.m. Tuesday:
Some forecast models show a chance for a light rain/light snow mix in portions of Minnesota and adjoining states Wednesday night and Thursday. It doesn’t look like a major weather event, but check forecast updates over the next few days if you have travel plans.
We have updated weather information for Minnesota and western Wisconsin on the Minnesota Public Radio News network, and on the MPR News live weather blog.
Weather nugget
Our average Twin Cities high temperature is coldest from Jan. 10 through Jan. 24….at 23 degrees. Our average Twin Cities high temp is warmest from July 8 through July 23…at 84 degrees.
Programming note
You can hear my live weather updates on MPR News at 7:35 a.m., 9:35 a.m. and 4:39 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.