Snowiest week of winter ahead?

This is one of those blogs where I feel the need to remind you, I'm just your humble weather messenger.

Get ready for what could become the snowiest part of winter for Minnesota.

Two, and possibly three separate snow systems are taking aim in the next few days. The first low-pressure wave arrives Thursday evening. Look for widespread snow to bust out across most of Minnesota and last through Thursday night.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Global Forecast System model paints the snow zone.

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NOAA GFS Thursday into Friday via tropical tidbits.

The Twin Cities National Weather Service lays out the likely snowfall scenario. This looks like an efficient snow producer, and I could see some local 5 inches-plus totals added to this map by Friday.

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Saturday storm looks impressive

Saturday's inbound storm system is starting to look even more impressive. The overnight American and European models have jogged the storm further north.

That would put the Twin Cities in play for the heavy snow zone. The Canadian model is the outlier with a more southerly track so far.

NOAA's GFS model gobsmacks much of Minnesota including the Twin Cities with heavy snow Saturday.

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NOAA GFS Saturday via tropical tidbits.

King Euro agrees

The overnight European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts model agrees with the latest GFS trend. The often trusty Euro brings .53 inch liquid into the Twin Cities, which would translate into several inches of snowfall.

At least it's a Saturday.

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European model forecast for Minneapolis Saturday via Norwegian Met Institute.

A pile of snow?

Some of the more reliable forecast models are cranking out a pile of snow in the next week. This may still change, but NOAA's GFS lays down a swath of 6 to 12-plus inches from southwestern Minnesota through the Twin Cities to Duluth and the North Shore by Sunday between the two systems.

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NOAA GFS total snowfall through Sunday via tropical tidbits.

And, yes, a potential third storm is indicated in the longer range forecast for next week. Is there a high school state tournament anytime soon?

Stay tuned and keep the snow shovel handy. On the plus side, this could be some of the best snow to play in this winter.

Silver linings my friends.

Milder temps

Looking for some mildly good weather news? At least we're not dealing with subzero temperatures. Highs in the 30s (above zero) look common over the next week.

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NOAA via Weather Bell.

Hang in there Minnesota.