Brighter days ahead; April snow stats
The sun will come out again, I promise.
After a run of gray dreary days I think we'd all welcome a little sunshine. It looks like the sun will return Thursday. There's also some rain in the forecast...and what looks like a pretty good Easter weekend.
Some forecast details:
Thursday: Brighter! Touch of AM fog, then mostly sunny, with a few clouds late. High near 52.
Create a More Connected Minnesota
MPR News is your trusted resource for the news you need. With your support, MPR News brings accessible, courageous journalism and authentic conversation to everyone - free of paywalls and barriers. Your gift makes a difference.
Thursday Night: Clouds increase & rain moves in. Low near 40.
Friday: Wet. Periods of rain. High near 49. SE winds 10-20 mph. Rainfall of .30" to .60" possible.
Saturday: Sun returns! High near 54.
Easter Sunday: Sunrise 6:14am. Mostly sunny & milder. High near 62. Grass noticeably greener?
April snow is common:
Our little morning snowburst produced 1.3" at MSP Airport. The total still keeps us in 4th place overall in the "snowiest winter on record" ranking.
"We're #4!... we're #4!"
Here are some additional snowfall totals from Twin Cities NWS.
PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TWIN CITIES/CHANHASSEN MN
233 PM CDT WED APR 20 2011
...SNOWFALL TOTALS FROM WINTER WEATHER EVENT TUESDAY INTO
WEDNESDAY...
THE TOTALS BELOW ARE NOT NECESSARILY THE FINAL AMOUNT FOR EACH
LOCATION. MANY LOCATIONS REPORTED THAT THE SNOWFALL MELTED
QUICKLY TODAY AS TEMPERATURES WARMED. SNOWFALL REPORTS OF AN
INCH OR MORE ARE LISTED.
SNOW REPORTS LISTED BY AMOUNT
INCHES LOCATION ST COUNTY TIME
------ ----------------------- -- -------------- -------
3.00 1 SSE CLEAR LAKE MN SHERBURNE 0806 AM
3.00 PLYMOUTH MN HENNEPIN 0759 AM
2.50 ST PAUL U OF MN CAMPUS MN RAMSEY 1100 AM
2.50 6 NW RICE LAKE WI BARRON 0936 AM
2.50 2 ENE PLYMOUTH MN HENNEPIN 0800 AM
2.40 SAUK RAPIDS MN BENTON 0642 AM
2.20 FRIDLEY MN ANOKA 1016 AM
2.20 NEW HOPE MN HENNEPIN 0806 AM
2.20 BUFFALO MN WRIGHT 0630 AM
2.10 ST CLOUD STATE UNIV MN STEARNS 0600 AM
2.00 ST CLOUD AIRPORT MN STEARNS 0100 PM
2.00 CLAYTON WI POLK 1016 AM
2.00 4 E ST FRANCIS MN ANOKA 0730 AM
2.00 KIMBALL MN STEARNS 0643 AM
1.90 5 NE FOREST LAKE MN CHISAGO 0700 AM
1.70 3 WNW RICE MN STEARNS 0700 AM
1.70 ELK MOUND WI DUNN 0700 AM
1.70 RICE MN BENTON 0700 AM
1.60 1 ENE ST MICHAEL MN WRIGHT 0700 AM
1.60 1 NNW NORTH ST PAUL MN RAMSEY 0700 AM
1.50 STANLEY WI CHIPPEWA 0800 AM
1.50 AUGUSTA WI EAU CLAIRE 0800 AM
1.50 1 SSW RIVER FALLS WI PIERCE 0705 AM
1.50 2 SE CHETEK WI BARRON 0700 AM
1.40 ONAMIA MN MILLE LACS 0830 AM
1.40 1 NW ISANTI MN ISANTI 0600 AM
1.30 MINNEAPOLIS ST PAUL APT MN HENNEPIN 0100 PM
1.30 CHANHASSEN NWS MN CARVER 0100 PM
1.30 FARMINGTON CWSU MN DAKOTA 1100 AM
1.30 ROBERTS WI ST. CROIX 0800 AM
1.30 1 WSW LITTLE CANADA MN RAMSEY 0700 AM
1.20 HAMMOND WI ST. CROIX 0700 AM
1.20 JIM FALLS WI CHIPPEWA 0630 AM
1.20 6 WNW ELLSWORTH WI PIERCE 0600 AM
1.10 1 SW EDINA MN HENNEPIN 0730 AM
1.10 4 SE MAPLEWOOD MN WASHINGTON 0700 AM
1.10 MORA MN KANABEC 0700 AM
1.00 WELLS MN FARIBAULT 0800 AM
1.00 ALBERT LEA MN FREEBORN 0800 AM
1.00 LITCHFIELD MN MEEKER 0800 AM
1.00 STILLWATER MN WASHINGTON 0800 AM
1.00 RICE LAKE WI BARRON 0800 AM
1.00 3 SE LAKE ELMO MN WASHINGTON 0800 AM
1.00 WINNEBAGO MN FARIBAULT 0800 AM
1.00 MILACA MN MILLE LACS 0730 AM
1.00 ST CROIX FALLS WI POLK 0700 AM
1.00 HOLCOMBE WI CHIPPEWA 0700 AM
1.00 ELLENDALE MN STEELE 0700 AM
1.00 LONG LAKE MN HENNEPIN 0700 AM
1.00 BALDWIN WI ST. CROIX 0700 AM
1.00 ZUMBROTA MN GOODHUE 0700 AM
1.00 ELK RIVER MN SHERBURNE 0700 AM
1.00 9 NNE BIRD ISLAND MN RENVILLE 0645 AM
1.00 LITCHFIELD MN MEEKER 0630 AM
The map shows the heavy snow band that dumped several inches on southeast Minnesota and much of central Wisconsin Tuesday night.
Here's a really cool new Experimental Snowfall Analysis tool from NOAA's Southern Region Headquarters. You can create your own custom snowfall maps here.
April snow is the norm:
As much as it pains me to say this, April snow is not unusual in Minnesota. Here are some April snowfall stats for the Twin Cities.
3.1" - Average April snowfall in the Twin Cities
1.9" - April 2011 snowfall (includes 1.3" from Wednesday morning)
2.5" - April 2010 snowfall in metro!
2006 - Last April in the Twin Cities without measureable snowfall
A check of daily snowfall records in late April (starting April 20th) shows there is only one date in April (April 24th) where no snow has been recorded in the Twin Cities. Daily snowfall records for the last 10 days of April range up to 6.6"!
You may be stunned to find out that so far this April snowfall is running below average and temperatures are running +2.5 degrees at MSP Airport.
It's been a long winter...and any additional cold, gray, snowy days at this point just seem wrong. I can't promise this, but I really do think this will be the last snowfall this season in most of southern Minnesota.
Hang in there!
PH