Wintry AM mix; clouds may limit Super Blue Blood Moon
The final morning of January looks slightly "interesting."
The same clipper dropping snow up north grazes the Twin Cities overnight. The result is a potential wintry mix of freezing drizzle, ice pellets and snow. Accumulations look minor, perhaps just enough to gum up roads for Wednesday morning rush hours.
Super Blue Blood Moon
Minnesota dodges cloud cover in the pre-dawn hours as the Super Blue Blood Moon peaks. But you can watch the NASA live stream here.
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The Canadian GEM model depicts a clouds beginning to break up around 6 a.m. Wednesday.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration models are less optimistic and portray thicker cloud cover across the Twin Cities. I still think the best viewing will be across western and central Minnesota.
Bottom line? In the Twin Cities you may have to hope for some breaks in the overcast to sneak a peek at the moon in the western sky between 6 a.m. and 7:30 a.m. Wednesday.
Arctic Super Bowl weekend
Things still look brittle as we head toward Super Bowl weekend. My latest read on the magnitude of cold with the inbound Arctic invasion suggests lows between -10 and -15 around the Twin Cities Sunday morning.
Highs likely struggle to reach 0 to +5 Sunday afternoon.
NOAA's Global Forecast System model shows the arctic blob bleeding south this weekend.
Wind chill: -20s Sunday morning
I feel for those working and volunteering early Sunday morning. Wind chills will be in the 20s below zero. It's going to be tough for those police and volunteers who have to be outside for long periods of time.
Flip side: California heat and drought
The flip side of persistent Midwest cold is usually hot dry weather in California.
Don't look now, but after the wettest year in history last year, drought is creeping back into the picture out west.
Reservoirs are falling rapidly from very high levels in the past year.
The short-term outlook remains dry. Californians are hoping for more storms before the typical wet season ends in the next few weeks.
Stay tuned.