Drizzle and rain south, wintry mix for northern Minnesota
Clouds will stay with us Friday, and it'll be wet at times.
Clouds could linger over parts of eastern Minnesota Saturday morning, then the rest of the weekend should be bright and dry.
From the Twin Cities metro area through southeastern Minnesota, periods of drizzle can be expected Friday morning, with some periods of rain showers during the afternoon and into Friday evening.
North-central Minnesota will see some snow showers at times this Friday, and northeastern Minnesota could see a wintry mix of drizzle, freezing drizzle and rain and snow showers.
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Some slick roads and bridge decks are possible in northeastern Minnesota and northwestern Wisconsin.
Here's the Friday morning statement from the Duluth office of the National Weather Service:
Special Weather Statement
National Weather Service Duluth MN
807 AM CST Fri Nov 17 2017
MNZ010>012-018>021-037-WIZ003-004-009-171630-
Koochiching-North St. Louis-Northern Cook/Northern Lake-
North Itasca-Central St. Louis-Southern Lake/North Shore-
Southern Cook/North Shore-Carlton/South St. Louis-Ashland-Iron-
Price-
Including the cities of International Falls, Ely, Isabella,
Bigfork, Hibbing, Two Harbors, Silver Bay, Grand Marais, Duluth,
Ashland, Hurley, and Phillips
807 AM CST Fri Nov 17 2017
...SLIPPERY ROADS ACROSS THE NORTHLAND EARLY THIS MORNING...
A wintry mixture of rain and snow is falling over portions of the
Minnesota Arrowhead and northwest Wisconsin early this morning.
This is producing some slick roads. If you must travel on area
roads this morning, be sure to allow extra time to reach your
destination, and allow plenty of space between you and other
traffic. Temperatures will warm above freezing by 11 AM this
morning, but there should still be a chance for a wintry mix
through the morning commute.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's High Resolution Rapid Refresh model shows the potential precipitation pattern Friday and Friday evening:
Green in the simulated radar loop indicates rain, blue indicates snow and purple can be freezing rain/drizzle or a mix of rain and snow.
The color chart to the right of the loop refers to the strength of the signal that returns to the radar, not to the amount of rain or snow.
Temperature trends
Our average high temperature is 41 degrees this time of year in the Twin Cities metro area.
We're expecting highs in the 40s in the Twin Cities and about the southern half of Minnesota Friday afternoon, with 30s in the north.
Cooler highs are on tap for Saturday, with 20s north and 30s in the south:
Saturday will also be a breezy day.
Highs Sunday range from the 40s in southwestern Minnesota to the 20s in the northeast:
Our warmest day in the next five days should be Monday, with lots of 40s:
Some spots in southern Minnesota could touch 50 on Monday.
Twin Cities highs return to the 30s for Tuesday and Wednesday, then we should see 40s on Thanksgiving.
Monday through Thursday look mostly dry for Minnesota.
Weather satellite launch
The launch of NOAA's newest polar orbiting satellite JPSS-1 has been rescheduled for early Saturday.
According to NASA:
The launch of a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket carrying the Joint Polar Satellite System-1 mission for NASA and NOAA is confirmed on the Western Range for Saturday, Nov. 18. The launch time is 1:47 a.m. PST (4:47 a.m. EST).
The planned launch on Wednesday was scrubbed due to excessive winds aloft.
Polar orbiting satellites have an important mission, as described by NOAA:
JPSS polar satellites circle the Earth from pole-to-pole and cross the equator about 14 times daily in the afternoon orbit—providing full global coverage twice a day.
Satellites in the JPSS constellation gather global measurements of atmospheric, terrestrial and oceanic conditions, including sea and land surface temperatures, vegetation, clouds, rainfall, snow and ice cover, fire locations and smoke plumes, atmospheric temperature, water vapor and ozone.
JPSS delivers key observations for the Nation's essential products and services, including forecasting severe weather like hurricanes, tornadoes and blizzards days in advance, and assessing environmental hazards such as droughts, forest fires, poor air quality and harmful coastal waters. Further, JPSS will provide continuity of critical, global Earth observations— including our atmosphere, oceans and land through 2038.
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.