Arctic chill; Saturday snow and Sunday sunshine

Chilly weather has returned to Minnesota just in time to greet our Super Bowl visitors.

They probably know that they'll need warm coats, hats and gloves during their visit, but the game is indoors.

I think that most visitors will enjoy their stay in the Twin Cities metro area.

Temperature trends

Thursday afternoon highs will be in the single digits above zero in most of southern and central Minnesota, with a few spots in far northern Minnesota staying below zero.

A wind chill advisory continues until noon this Thursday for about the northern half of Minnesota, plus parts of the Twin Cities metro area and southeastern Minnesota:

Details of the advisory that includes the northeast and east metro:

URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE

National Weather Service Twin Cities/Chanhassen MN

730 AM CST Thu Feb 1 2018

...VERY COLD WIND CHILLS ACROSS CENTRAL MINNESOTA INTO NORTHWEST

WISCONSIN THIS MORNING...

.Wind chills from 20 below zero to 30 below zero are expected

this morning across central Minnesota into west central

Wisconsin. A wind chill advisory is in effect until noon today,

for areas generally along and north of a line from Benson to

Richmond to Stacy Minnesota, continuing to Eau Claire, Wisconsin.

MNZ061-063-078-WIZ023>028-011800-

/O.EXA.KMPX.WC.Y.0008.000000T0000Z-180201T1800Z/

Anoka-Washington-Goodhue-St. Croix-Pierce-Dunn-Pepin-Chippewa-

Eau Claire-

Including the cities of Blaine, Stillwater, Red Wing, Hudson,

River Falls, Prescott, Menomonie, Durand, Chippewa Falls,

and Eau Claire

730 AM CST Thu Feb 1 2018

...WIND CHILL ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL NOON CST TODAY...

* WHAT...Very cold wind chills expected. The cold wind chills

will cause frostbite in as little as 30 minutes to exposed

skin. Expect wind chills to range from 20 below zero to 30

below zero.

* WHERE...Portions of west central Wisconsin and east central

and southeast Minnesota.

* WHEN...Until noon CST today.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A Wind Chill Advisory means that cold air and the wind will

combine to create low wind chills. Frost bite and hypothermia can

occur if precautions are not taken. Make sure you wear a hat and

gloves.

Winds will be lighter on Friday, and highs in the teens above zero are expected in parts of central and southern Minnesota:

Some lower 20s are possible in southwestern Minnesota Friday afternoon.

Highs in the teens will be common in the south on Saturday, with single digits in much of the north:

Single digit highs are expected in most of Minnesota on Sunday:

Our Twin Cities average high temp is 26 degrees on Feb. 4, so Super Bowl Sunday will be about 18 degrees colder than average.

Twin Cities metro area highs are expected to be in the teens from Monday through Wednesday of next week.

Snow chances

Northern Minnesota will have the best chance of snow showers on Friday.

Periods of snow are likely over all of Minnesota Saturday into Saturday night.

Some snow showers could linger over southeastern Minnesota into Sunday morning.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's North American Mesoscale forecast model shows the potential snow pattern from Friday through Sunday morning:

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 snow.

At this point, it looks like the Twin Cities metro area could see a couple of inches of snow by Saturday night, but check for forecast updates.

January makes it to the top 10 

The Twin Cities tally for January is now complete.

Preliminary info shows that January 2018 was 1 degree warmer than average in the Twin Cities metro area:

That's impressive, after a very cold start to the month.

The January snow total was 20.4 inches at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport.

A check with the Minnesota State Climatology Office shows that January 2018 will join January 1998 as the 10th snowiest Januarys in Twin Cities weather records:

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.