A mild afternoon; snowflake chance for parts of northern Minn. Saturday night

A frost-free start to Thursday!

We only dropped into the 50s in the Twin Cities metro area this Thursday morning, after seeing lows in the 30s and morning frost on Tuesday and Wednesday.

It's safe to bring the potted plants and hanging plants outside again in the metro area, at least for a few days.

Temperature trends

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Thursday afternoon highs will be in the 60s over most of Minnesota, with some 50s in the northeast.

A few sun-splashed spots in far western Minnesota could see lower 70s.

A cold front moves across Minnesota Thursday night, so Friday highs will be mostly in the 50s:

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Some lower 60s are possible in far southeastern Minnesota.

Saturday will feature a lot of 50s:

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50s will be common on Sunday too, and some spots in the far north could top out in the 40s:

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After weekend highs in the 50s, the Twin Cities metro area should see highs around 60 on Monday, then around 64 Tuesday and 66 on Wednesday.

Rain chances

Eastern Minnesota could have some areas of drizzle Thursday morning, and the northeast could also see scattered showers Thursday night.

Scattered showers are possible in southeastern Minnesota Friday and Friday evening.

There's a good chance of showers developing over Minnesota Saturday afternoon, then continuing into Saturday night.

Northwestern and north-central Minnesota could see some snowflakes mix with the rain late Saturday night and very early Sunday morning.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Global Forecast System model shows the potential precipitation pattern Saturday into early Sunday:

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NOAA GFS model precipitation rate Saturday through Sunday morning, via tropical tidbits

The color chart to the right of the loop refers to the precipitation rate (mm per hour), not to the total amount of precipitation.

Blue areas are where the precipitation could be snow or a rain/snow mix.

Twin Cities snow data

Everything that you want to know about snow in the Twin Cities can be found on the Minnesota State Climatology Office's snow data page.

Here's one snow tidbit that might impress your friends: The average autumn date of our first 1 inch or greater snowfall in the Twin Cities is Nov. 18.

Last autumn, the Twin Cities metro area had its first official one inch snowfall on Nov. 22, just six days after a high temp of 61 degrees on Nov. 16!

Fall color update

I saw some beautiful autumn hues during my travels around the Twin Cities metro area this week.

Parts of northern Minnesota are now past peak fall color, but there are still many areas of great fall color in our favorite state.

Here’s the most recent fall color report from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources:

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Minnesota Department of Natural Resources

All deciduous trees are included in the fall color report, not just maples.

A Wisconsin fall color report is also available.

California fires

Historic wildfires have hit California this week:

Wildfires continue in parts of northern California this Thursday.

Red flag warnings have been extended:

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NWS San Francisco

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., 9:35 a.m. and 4:35 p.m. each Saturday and Sunday.