Eleven cold days and counting

By my count, Monday has been our eleventh consecutive cold day. This is a date on which the Twin Cities' average high temperature is 47 and on which we warmed to a lovely 70 degrees last year.

Expect the cold weather to deepen this week and continue right into the weekend. Low temperatures Tuesday morning will range from just below zero in the northwestern corner near Canada to the mid 20s in the Twin Cities and the southeast. Afternoon highs will be from around 20 in the chilly northwest to the mid 30s in the southeast. The Twin Cities should have a high around 33.

Seriously cold on Thursday and into Friday

The coldest air will arrive on Thursday and continue into Friday. The Twin Cities area is likely to reach just the mid 20s for high temperatures on Thursday. Farther north will be colder, as usual. The Brainerd and Alexandria areas are forecast to have highs only around 17 that day while Ely and International Falls might be looking at highs of just around 13.

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By Friday morning, the Twin Cities should have a chilly low temperature around 15. That is a very cold temperature considering that we will not have snow cover to radiate heat to space reflects how cold the air from Canada will be.

Speaking of snow

Today is the first day of Winter Hazard Awareness Week, formerly Winter Weather Awareness Week, in Minnesota. So it is appropriate that some snow is falling on our state. The snow has been mostly light and has been streaming eastward across the southernmost counties of the state.

Nov 6 radar
Weather radar shortly after 5 p.m. Monday. Twin Cities National Weather Service

Here is a look at the average annual snowfall around Minnesota. The maximum tends to extend from the Duluth area northwest toward the Iron Range.

Nov 6 - AnnualSnowfall
Average annual snowfall in Minnesota. National Weather Service

Next chance of snow

A bit of snow is likely to slide southward out of Canada Wednesday afternoon and lay a rather light layer of white on about the northern half of Minnesota from mid-day Wednesday into that evening.

A weaker disturbance could drop a little light snow on northern Minnesota on Saturday while rain or a rain/snow mix develops around the Twin Cities area.

Warmer next week

Forecast models continue to flush out the cold air by Monday and treat us to warmer-than-average temperatures next week.

As long as the ground remains snow-free, days with sunshine and a south or southwest wind can have the opportunity to warm us well into the 50s in about the southern third of the state next week or the following week. A nice shot of Indian Summer Weather would be a treat after this cold, cloudy stretch.

No major storms are likely during the next two weeks.