Windy afternoon; mild Saturday, warm Sunday

I hope that you have a great St. Patrick's Day!

Green, of course, is the color of the day.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shared this beautiful satellite picture of Ireland, taken last June:

2012 records

Five years ago today, we set a new record high of 80 degrees in the Twin Cities. It was also a new record for the first 80 degree reading in a calendar year.

It's easy to remember the date of our first 80, since it happened on St. Patrick's Day.

By the way, it's also easy to remember our record seasonal snowfall in the Twin Cities, 98.6 inches ( 1983-84) , because 98.6 degrees is our typical body temp.

Back to year March of 2012, it was the warmest March on record in the Twin Cities.

On St. Patrick's Day, we were in the middle of an impressive stretch of record warmth, according to Minnesota State Climatology Office :

During this warm stretch, the maximum temperature in the Twin Cities has reached or exceeded 70 degrees on eight days, breaking the previous March record of five set in 1910. Through March 19, the Twin Cities maximum temperature reached or exceeded 70 degrees for four consecutive days, breaking the previous record of three consecutive days which occurred on March 23-25, 1939 and March 22-24, 1945

Here's a summary of the Twin Cities high temperature (and warmest low temperature) records that were tied or broken in March of 2012:

Mild Saturday, warm Sunday

Winds will pick up Friday afternoon as a cool front moves through Minnesota. Gusts over 30 mph are possible over western Minnesota with gusts over 25 mph possible in the east.

Our Friday highs will be in the 30s north, with 40s in the south.

Similar highs are expected on Saturday:

Southerly breezes will allow high temps to reach the 50s over much of Minnesota on Sunday:

Southwestern Minnesota will see some 60s Sunday afternoon.

Our Monday high temp should reach 50 in the Twin Cities, then lower 40s are on tap for Tuesday and Wednesday.

Snow update

The weekly snow depth map from the Minnesota State Climatology Office shows that the most snow cover is over far northern Minnesota and parts of southern Minnesota:

There is very little snow on the ground from the Twin Cities metro area into central Minnesota.

I should note that parts of northeastern Minnesota reported 2 to 3 additional inches of snow through Friday morning. Duluth and Two Harbors have received about 4 inches of snow since the snow depth map was published.

Snow lovers will want to get outdoors on Saturday, because some of the snow will melt on Sunday.

Programming note

You can hear my live weather updates on Minnesota Public Radio at 7:49 a.m. Thursdays and Fridays, and at 7:35 a.m. and 4:35 p.m. each Saturday and Sunday.