Forecast: Warmest March on record likely; Brilliant sky show tonight!

1st 70 degree day of 2012 likely tomorrow!

1 average number of 70 degrees highs in the Twin Cities in March

5 most 70 degree days ever recorded in March (1910)

5 or 6 70 degree days possible in the next 2 weeks at MSP Airport!

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+6.5 degrees vs. average at MSP Airport so far in March

10th straight month warmer than average in Minnesota!

+20 to 30 degrees next two weeks according to GFS & European Models

44.9 degrees warmest March on record at MSP in 1910

44 to 47 degrees likely March average temps this years at MSP Airport

917 pothole reports in the City of Minneapolis in Feb & Mar 2011

80 pothole reports this year in Feb & March!

8 snow emergencies last winter in Minneapolis (most ever)

0 snow emergencies this winter (least ever)

"Super-Conjunction" Venus & Jupiter dazzle in western evening sky!

Marek Nikodem Mar. 11, 2012 near Szubin, Poland

Details:

"Venus and Jupiter shone so brightly that it was visible even through the clouds. They are like two lanterns illuminating the darkness. It's a wonderful sight. Nikon D 700/ Nikkor 24-70, exp. 10-20 sec, f - 2.8, iso 1000"

Warmest March on record??

Monday morning I posted on the distinct possibility that this will go down as the warmest March on record. Looking at the numbers that looks more likely today.

So far we're running +6.5 degrees vs. average this month at MSP Airport and International Falls. The rest of the month is likely to be a good +20 to +30 degrees above average!

That should put us in record territory by months' end.

The warmest March on record? 1910 when the average monthly temp at MSP Airport was 44.9 degrees.

1st 70 of 2012 and more records ahead!

It looks like a lock we'll see, feel and rejoice in the 1st 70 degree temps of 2012 in Minnesota Wednesday. Can you say "flash mob" dancin' in the streets?

We'll blow Wednesday's record high of 64 out of the water, and we may set more records this week.

Take a look at the records below for MSP this week.

Now the forecast from GFS:

As you can see we have a real shot at 3 more records in the next week!

The Twin Cities NWS Tuesday AM forecast discussion highlights the extreme pattern.

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION

NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TWIN CITIES/CHANHASSEN MN

359 AM CDT TUE MAR 13 2012

.DISCUSSION...

... WITH LONGWAVE RIDGING OVERHEAD THROUGH AT LEAST THE WEEKEND...THE FORECAST LOOKS VERY WARM AND VIRTUALLY PRECIP FREE. EVEN WITH SOMETIMES MODEST MECHANICAL MIXING WEDNESDAY THROUGH THE WEEKEND...THERMAL PROFILES SUPPORT A PROLONGED PERIOD WHERE TEMPERATURES WILL BE NEAR OR EXCEED RECORDS. AS OF RIGHT NOW...THE 2 WARMEST DAYS LOOK LIKE WEDNESDAY AND SATURDAY WHEN WE GET SURGES OF WARM AIR FROM THE PLAINS. THESE DAYS SHOULD BRING HIGH TEMPERATURES CLOSE TO 30 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL. IN BETWEEN THE WARM SURGES...TEMPERATURES WILL STILL BE 10 TO 20 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL.HISTORICALLY...WE ONLY AVERAGE ABOUT 1 DAY OR SO IN THE 70S DURING THE WHOLE MONTH OF MARCH IN THE TWIN CITIES. THE MOST 70-DEGREE DAYS CAME IN 1910 WHEN THERE WERE 5 SCATTERED ABOUT THE MONTH...WITH THE MAJORITY COMING NEAR THE END OF THE MARCH THAT YEAR. WE MAY SEE 5-6 DAYS IN A ROW WHERE THE MERCURY ECLIPSES 70 DEGREES IN THE TWIN CITIES OVER THE NEXT WEEK AND A HALF.

Mild winter= fewer potholes!

Here's one thing we can all be thankful for this spring. Fewer potholes. Less snowmelt and fewer freeze-thaw cycles mean road crews can take on other tasks instead of patching pesky potholes.

My former colleagues at WCCO-TV have the story.

Nice to have a smoother ride this spring.

Weird "Phoenix Flash" still a mystery:

Who says AM weather & traffic in Phoenix is boring? No word yet on what caused the mystery flash in Phoenix.

Mysterious Light Flashes During Traffic on Fox 10: MyFoxPHOENIX.com

Venus-Jupiter "Super-Conjunction" peaks tonight!

Venus and Jupiter will dazzle again in the western sky all week. The conjunction is the best in years.

The two planets reach the closest tonight at justt 3 degrees apart int he western sky. Venus is the brighter of the two, and will climb higher in the coming days.

Look in the western sky after sunset and enjoy!

"Record" Northern Lights?

Our active sun has kept Northern Lights going for nearly two weeks at high latitudes.

BROKEN RECORD? "The recent sustained activity of sunspot AR1429 has kept the Arctic Circle alight with auroras for almost two weeks. "I have spent many thousands of hours watching and photographing the Northern Lights," says aurora tour guide Chad Blakely of Abisko Sweden, "and I can honestly say that I have never seen the auroras this strong for so many days in a row." In a movie he made last night, March 12th, a green tornado of light swirls across Venus and Jupiter:"

Check out the amazing video from Sweden.

Powerful Aurora borealis over Abisko National Park. 03-12-2012 from Lights Over Lapland on Vimeo.

PH