Flake or sprinkle chance today; winter storm warning much of central and northern Minnesota tonight
This doesn't feel like Spring.
Some snow showers and rain showers will move across parts of Minnesota today.
The main snow event will be tonight into very early Saturday.
It still looks like the highest snow totals tonight will be over northern Minnesota and parts of central Minnesota.
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The Twin Cities metro area could see occasional rain/snow showers from late-morning into early this afternoon, then periods of a rain/snow mix overnight and very early Saturday morning.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's North American Mesoscale forecast model shows the potential precipitation pattern today through Saturday 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 or rain.
Warnings and advisories
Most of northern Minnesota and parts of central Minnesota are in a winter storm warning this Friday night for heavy snow, blowing snow and difficult travel:
The winter storm warning starts at 10 p.m. in the Duluth area, and ends at 10 a.m. Saturday:
URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
National Weather Service Duluth MN
354 AM CDT Fri Mar 30 2018
...HEAVY SNOWFALL EXPECTED TONIGHT ACROSS PARTS OF THE
NORTHLAND...
.An area of heavy snowfall will spread across northern Minnesota
and northwest Wisconsin tonight, leading to significant snowfall
accumulations and very poor travel conditions. Snow will begin
this evening in north-central Minnesota and spread eastward over
northeast Minnesota and northwest Wisconsin late tonight. Snowfall
rates of over one inch per hour will be possible after midnight,
along with northerly winds of 15 to 25 mph and gusts up to 30 mph,
which may cause blowing snow at times through Saturday afternoon.
Reduced visibilities down to a quarter mile or less and snow-
covered roads will be likely Saturday morning, making travel
extremely dangerous. Snow will end quickly from west to east
Saturday morning.
MNZ019-025-026-033>038-302100-
/O.UPG.KDLH.WS.A.0007.180331T0000Z-180331T1200Z/
/O.NEW.KDLH.WS.W.0010.180331T0300Z-180331T1500Z/
Central St. Louis-North Cass-South Itasca-South Cass-Crow Wing-
Northern Aitkin-South Aitkin-Carlton/South St. Louis-Pine-
Including the cities of Hibbing, Walker, Grand Rapids,
Pine River, Brainerd, Hill City, Aitkin, Duluth, Pine City,
and Hinckley
354 AM CDT Fri Mar 30 2018
...WINTER STORM WARNING IN EFFECT FROM 10 PM THIS EVENING TO
10 AM CDT SATURDAY...
* WHAT...Heavy snow expected. Total snow accumulations of 6 to 10
inches, with localized amounts up to 12 inches, are expected.
* WHERE...Portions of east central, north central and northeast
Minnesota.
* WHEN...From 10 PM this evening to 10 AM CDT Saturday.
* ADDITIONAL DETAILS...Plan on difficult travel conditions. Expect
significant reductions in visibility at times due to blowing
snow as winds could gust as high as 30 mph.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
A Winter Storm Warning for snow means severe winter weather
conditions will make travel very hazardous or impossible. If you
must travel, keep an extra flashlight, food and water in your
vehicle in case of an emergency. The latest road conditions for
Minnesota can be found at 511mn.org, and for Wisconsin at
511wi.gov, or by calling 511 in either state.
In northwestern Minnesota, the winter storm warning starts at 7 p.m. and runs until 10 a.m. Saturday:
URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
National Weather Service Grand Forks ND
436 AM CDT Fri Mar 30 2018
MNZ027-028-031-032-311500-
/O.UPG.KFGF.WS.A.0005.180331T0000Z-180331T1200Z/
/O.NEW.KFGF.WS.W.0007.180331T0000Z-180331T1500Z/
/O.CON.KFGF.WW.Y.0016.000000T0000Z-180330T1500Z/
West Becker-East Becker-East Otter Tail-Wadena-
Including the cities of Detroit Lakes, Wolf Lake, Perham,
New York Mills, Parkers Prairie, Henning, Battle Lake, Wadena,
and Menahga
436 AM CDT Fri Mar 30 2018
...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 AM CDT THIS
MORNING...
...WINTER STORM WARNING IN EFFECT FROM 7 PM THIS EVENING TO 10 AM
CDT SATURDAY...
* WHAT...Two different winter weather events are expected. The
first will bring additional snow accumulations 1 to 3 inches
this morning. For the second event tonight. Blizzard conditions
will be possible. Winds gusting as high as 45 mph could cause
whiteout conditions in blowing snow. Total snow accumulations of
6 to 8 inches are expected, with localized amounts to 12 inches.
* WHERE...West Becker, East Becker, East Otter Tail and Wadena
Counties.
* WHEN...For the Winter Storm Warning, from 7 PM this evening to
10 AM CDT Saturday. For the Winter Weather Advisory, until 10
AM CDT this morning.
* ADDITIONAL DETAILS...Plan on difficult travel conditions this
morning. Travel conditions will be very difficult to near
impossible tonight. The cold wind chills as low as 20 below
zero tonight could cause frostbite on exposed skin in as little
as 30 minutes.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
A Winter Storm Warning for snow and blowing snow means severe
winter weather conditions will make travel very hazardous or
impossible. If you must travel, keep an extra flashlight, food
and water in your vehicle in case of an emergency. The latest
road conditions for the state you are calling from can be
obtained by calling 5 1 1.
A Winter Weather Advisory for snow means periods of snow will
cause primarily travel difficulties. Be prepared for snow covered
roads and limited visibilities, and use caution while driving.
The latest road conditions for the state you are calling from can
be obtained by calling 5 1 1.
You'll notice that parts of northwestern Minnesota also have an winter weather advisory this morning.
Some areas, including St. Cloud, are in a winter weather advisory tonight:
URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
National Weather Service Twin Cities/Chanhassen MN
349 AM CDT Fri Mar 30 2018
...PERIOD OF HEAVY SNOW AND BLOWING SNOW POSSIBLE TONIGHT INTO
SATURDAY MORNING...
.A band of heavy snow will develop north of a low pressure system
expected to track eastward across central Minnesota and central
or northern Wisconsin. A Winter Storm Warning has been issued for
Todd, Morrison, Mille Lacs, Kanabec, and Rusk counties for 4 to 7
inches of snow accumulation with areas of blowing snow. A Winter
Weather Advisory has been issued for a row of counties south of
the warning for lighter snow accumulations around 3 inches.
MNZ049>052-301800-
/O.NEW.KMPX.WW.Y.0014.180331T0300Z-180331T1500Z/
Stearns-Benton-Sherburne-Isanti-
Including the cities of St Cloud, Foley, Elk River, and Cambridge
349 AM CDT Fri Mar 30 2018
...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 10 PM THIS EVENING TO
10 AM CDT SATURDAY...
* WHAT...Snow and blowing snow expected. Total snow accumulations
of 3 to 4 inches are expected.
* WHERE...Stearns, Benton, Sherburne and Isanti Counties.
* WHEN...From 10 PM this evening to 10 AM CDT Saturday.
* ADDITIONAL DETAILS...Plan on slippery road conditions. In
addition, some reductions to visibility are likely. Winds
gusting as high as 40 mph will cause patchy blowing and
drifting snow.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
A Winter Weather Advisory for snow means periods of snow will
cause primarily travel difficulties. Be prepared for snow covered
roads and limited visibilities, and use caution while driving.
The latest road conditions for Minnesota can be found at
511mn.org and for Wisconsin at 511wi.gov, or by calling 5 1 1 in
either state.
In the Twin Cities metro area, the best chance of seeing a couple of inches of snow overnight would be in northern parts of Anoka and Washington counties. Most of the metro area will probably see just a light coating of snow.
Updates
Updated weather information can be heard on the Minnesota Public Radio Network, and you can see updated weather information on the MPR news live weather blog.
The Minnesota Department of Transportation will provide road condition updates.
A cold and windy Saturday
The low pressure system will be to our east on Saturday, with strong northwesterly winds over Minnesota.
Here's an hourly forecast plot for Saturday in the Twin Cities, courtesy of the National Weather Service:
Winds (circled in purple) are expected to be in the 20 to 30 mph range with gusts close to 40 mph.
Temperatures (circled in blue) could start out around 30 degrees, then quickly drop into the 20s:
Wind chill temperatures in the 10 to 14 degree range are expected in the metro area much of Saturday.
The winds will be much lighter on Sunday, but temps will be in the teens Sunday morning with wind chills in the single digits for awhile.
I'm expecting a lot of sunshine statewide on Sunday, with highs in the 20s in northern Minnesota and in the 30s in southern Minnesota.
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.