Mostly cloudy stretch; chance of Sunday flakes

It's been mostly cloudy for most Minnesotans since last Saturday.

Unless gray is your favorite color, you're probably hoping for some sunshine.

The best that I see in the forecast maps is the possibility of an occasional peek of sun this afternoon and Saturday.

It will be cloudy or mostly cloudy today through Sunday.

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Cloudiest months

We had plenty of sunshine during the first half of November, with a lot more clouds during the second half of the month.

And December is starting out mostly cloudy.

According to data from the National Climatic Data Center, posted by the Minnesota State Climatology Office, November is typically our cloudiest month of the year in the Twin Cities.

We have an average of 39% of possible sunshine in November:

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NCDC, via MN State Climatology Office

December is typically our second cloudiest month of the year in the Twin Cities, with 42% of possible sunshine.

Our sunniest month is typically July, with 72% of possible sunshine.

Mostly 30s this weekend

Highs will be in the lower 30s for most Minnesotans today, and similar highs are on tap for Saturday:

rt123h

Sunday's highs will be a bit warmer:

rt124h

Our average high is 32 degrees this time of year in the Twin Cities

Sunday and Tuesday flakes

We could see some snow showers on Sunday.

Periods of snow are possible on Tuesday, and it could start out as a rain/snow mix over central and southern Minnesota.

Here is the precipitation pattern for Sunday through Tuesday, from NOAA’s Global Forecast System model:

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NOAA GFS model for Sunday through Tuesday, via tropicaltidbits.com

You'll notice the isobars (lines of equal pressure) are close together on Tuesday.

That means that Tuesday is likely to be a windy day.

Cold stretch

Arctic air spreads over the upper Midwest on Wednesday, and highs may struggle to reach the lower 20s over southern Minnesota.

Northern Minnesota could see highs in the teens on Wednesday...the coldest day in months!

Below normal highs are expected from next Wednesday through the following weekend.

The outlook from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Climate Prediction Center shows a tendency for below normal temps during the second week of December too:

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NOAA/Climate Prediction Center

If that verifies, our heating bills will look much more wintry in December!

Programming note

You can hear my live weather updates on Minnesota Public Radio at 7:35 a.m. and 4:35 p.m. each Saturday and Sunday.