March lion roars, from blizzard to thunderstorms today across Minnesota

Take your pick.

Whatever weather you desire you can find across Minnesota today. An impressive later winter, early spring storm system is winding up in the Upper Midwest today.

Here's an infrared satellite shot from the College of DuPage Weather Lab of the impressive storm structure as the system winds up in Nebraska.

The system pounds the Upper Midwest with a variety of volatile weather today and tonight. Let's start with the late-season blizzard in the Red River Valley and much of the Dakotas.

The Bismarck, N.D., National Weather Service highlights the dangerous system with 50+ mph winds and 12 to 16 inch snowfall totals. These kinds of conditions will create a shutdown blizzard, and literally life-threatening conditions for anyone caught outside tonight.

Here's the system overview from the Red River Valley National Weather Service.

The Duluth NWS highlights the chances for heavy snow and ice up north.

And the Twin Cities NWS lays out the wide variety of weather today, from 12 to 20 inch snow potential in northwest Minnesota to thunder in the metro and the southeast.

Impressive system 

No doubt about it, this is a well organized late season storm. Here's a look ta the surface low spinning up and tracking from Sioux Falls, S.D., to near the metro today. Click the map to animate.

Twin Cities: rain and thunder threat today

The Twin Cities and southern Minnesota rides the milder southern side of this storm. A band of rain moves through southern Minnesota this morning.

Here's the latest Twin Cities radar loop.

Around midday into early afternoon, the system's "dry slot" may even allow for some sunshine in southern Minnesota. If the timing is juts right, temps could soar into the 60s this afternoon as the dry slot rides in.

Thunder threat

If everything works out just right, we may see some thunderstorms today across southern Minnesota and the metro.

If the timing of sunshine and the dry slot and the approaching upper low is likely to destabilize the atmosphere this afternoon. If we get enough sun for a few hours at critical 'max heating time' a narrow band of low topped storm may race from southwest to northeast across southern Minnesota into Wisconsin between about 4 p.m. and 8 p.m.

Here's a look at NOAA's High Resolution Radar forecast for 6 p.m. this evening showing a narrow line of thunderstorms racing east through southeast Minnesota into Wisconsin, and the blizzard rages in the Red River Valley.

Gusty winds and hail are possible with these storms. Even though NOAA's Storm Prediction Center is not highlighting any tornado threat, my view is there is enough wind shear that I can't rule out a brief tornado spinning up near or south of the metro in southern Minnesota if the storms get strong enough.

It's a small chance, but keep an eye out for possible severe weather warnings this afternoon into early evening.

Wild weather week

Batten down the hatches, the rest of this week could be a wild one in Minnesota.

After today's storm, the bottom drops out on temps, as much colder air pours back in from Canada. Both NOAA's Global Forecast System and the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts suggest we need to keep an eye on a potential system for later this week. Tracks and temps are still uncertain, but we'll have to watch for potential rain or snow late in the week as another low winds up and tracks this way.

Right now next weekend look kinder and gentler, with the potential for a nicer spring-like weekend again.

Stay tuned!