Break In The Snow Friday - More Likely Saturday Into Sunday

Wednesday's snow brought 3.4" of the white stuff to International Falls, tying the record for the day. The record had previously been set in 1988. 0.6" fell at MSP, though most accumulation occurred on cold surfaces - with not much accumulation on snow-cleared surfaces until near sunset.

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With Wednesday's 0.6" of snow at MSP, we're now at 75.3" for the snow season. This ranks as the 13th snowiest season on record. We would need 3" to pull into a tie for 10th place, and 9.7" to pull into 5th place. With additional snow through the weekend, I think we will pull into the top ten within the next few days - but the top five is probably out of reach at the moment (though there's still plenty of March and all of April to go!).

Meanwhile, Duluth is at 103" of snow for the season - the 17th most on record.

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Forecast loop from 6 PM Thursday to 6 AM Friday.

Snow - moderately falling at times - will continue across the southern two-thirds of the state as we head through Thursday Night. This snow should be coming to an end as we head toward Friday morning.

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After the Thursday/Thursday Night snow here in the metro, we'll get a break in the precipitation heading into Friday. Mainly cloudy skies, though, will stick around. Morning temperatures will start off in the mid-20s, climbing to the mid-30s for highs.

A quieter Friday is expected statewide, with mostly cloudy skies for many areas. By the mid-afternoon hours, though, some sunnier skies will be possible across far northern Minnesota. Highs will be in the upper 20s to 30s statewide - around average to about 10F degrees below average depending on where you are.

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Unfortunately, more snow is on the way as we head into the weekend as a clipper system moves through. The snow will start mainly in the afternoon hours here in the metro, lasting into the early overnight hours before we might see a little break Saturday Night. The back side of the clipper slides through into Sunday morning, bringing another burst of some snow along with it, but Sunday won't be all-day snow.

Here's a look at that clipper system rolling in as we head through the weekend. Snow chances will already start to move in during the morning hours across parts of western and central Minnesota, sliding into the metro during the afternoon. Snow will continue into the evening in southern Minnesota (which means snow is possible for the Minnesota United home opener) before we get a break overnight. Some more light snow looks to move in Sunday morning as the area of low pressure moves across the state before ending around the midday hours. More steady snow with this system is expected to fall across northern Minnesota Saturday into early Sunday.

Forecast snow totals between 6 AM Friday and 7 AM Sunday.

Throwing out some early snowfall totals - maybe 3-6" for the metro, with heavier totals (6-9"+) from St. Cloud northward across northwestern/north-central Minnesota and along the North Shore.

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The Next Burst of Snow Comes Saturday PM
By Paul Douglas

According to NOAA, today is the 101st consecutive day of 1"+ snow on the ground in the Twin Cities. If we reach 114 days of 1"+ snow depth we'll be on the Top 10 list there as well. It's the longest duration of snowcover at MSP since 2001.

We get a little break today as snow tapers, but the next (inevitable) band of snow arrives Saturday afternoon with an additional 2-4" by Sunday morning. If it's any consolation we may see a few days near next week.

It's official: La Nina is over. NOAA reports an "ENSO-neutral" phase of temperatures in the Pacific, with a good chance of an El Nino warm phase later this year.

That could keep us warmer (and wetter) than average into next winter. Oy. No rest for the weary.

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FRIDAY: Flurries taper. Gray skies. Wake up 27. High 35. Chance of precipitation 10%. Wind NE 7-12 mph.

SATURDAY: Snow arrives PM hours, another 2-4". Wake up 28. High 31. Chance of precipitation 100%. Wind SE 15-25 mph.

SUNDAY: Clouds and leftover flakes. Wake up 27. High 33. Chance of precipitation 50%. Wind NW 10-20 mph.

MONDAY: Some much-needed sunshine. Wake up 19. High 31. Chance of precipitation 10%. Wind NW 10-15 mph.

TUESDAY: Sunny with light winds. Wake up 8. High 30. Chance of precipitation 0%. Wind S 7-12 mph.

THURSDAY: Rain changing to snow. Wake up 31. High 38. Chance of precipitation 70%. Wind N 10-20 mph.

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Minneapolis Weather Almanac And Sun Data
March 10th

*Length Of Day: 11 hours, 37 minutes, and 18 seconds
*Daylight GAINED Since Yesterday: 3 minutes and 8 seconds

*When do we see 12 Hours of Daylight?: March 18th (12 hours, 2 minutes, 31 seconds)
*Earliest Sunrise Before DST Begins: March 11th (6:33 AM)
*Latest Sunset Before DST Begins: March 11th (6:13 PM)

This Day in Weather History
March 10th

2012: The record high of 66 degrees at the Twin Cities is the first of 8 record highs in a 10-day span.

1948: Bitterly cold conditions, especially for March, occur in Minnesota. A low of -44 is reported at Itasca.

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Active weather continues across the United States on Friday. One system in the eastern United States brings the threat of snow across the Great Lakes and storms in the Southeast. A system out west will bring heavy rain and snow.

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How flowers show climate change impacts as Spring 2023 arrives 'earlier than we've ever seen' in some places

More from USA Today: "Daffodils, violets and other flowers are arriving early in many gardens and fields this spring, unfurling lovely colors and shedding light on how plants are adapting to climate change. Observers are reporting very early leaf outs of the common lilac in Pennsylvania, the brilliant yellow blossoms of forsythia in Maine and American witch hazel in New York, said Theresa Crimmins, director of the USA National Phenology Network at the University of Arizona. Ecologist Matt Austin examined more than 140 years of pressed flowers and plants in the Missouri Botanical Garden collection to track how violets changed over time. He found the flowers — widely known as one of the first harbingers of spring — are responding to both increased rainfall and warmer temperatures."

This geothermal startup showed its wells can be used like a giant underground battery

More from MIT Technology Review: "In late January, a geothermal power startup began conducting an experiment deep below the desert floor of northern Nevada. It pumped water thousands of feet underground and then held it there, watching for what would happen. Geothermal power plants work by circulating water through hot rock deep beneath the surface. In most modern plants, it resurfaces at a well head, where it's hot enough to convert refrigerants or other fluids into vapor that cranks a turbine, generating electricity. But Houston-based Fervo Energy is testing out a new spin on the standard approach—and on that day, its engineers and executives were simply interested in generating data. The readings from gauges planted throughout the company's twin wells showed that pressure quickly began to build, as water that had nowhere else to go actually flexed the rock itself. When they finally released the valve, the output of water surged and it continued pumping out at higher-than-normal levels for hours."

More from Bloomberg: "No electricity grid in the US has added more renewable power over the past decade than the Texas grid has. Back in 2012, both California and the Midwest generated more power from wind, solar and other renewables than the Lone Star State. But in 2022, Texas was the winner. The future of the state's grid is a study in supply, demand and uncertainty. One thing that is certain: Most of Texas' renewable generation today is from wind. Last year, wind projects in the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (Ercot, the grid that covers most of the state) generated more than 107,000 gigawatt-hours of electricity; solar generated 24,000, less than a quarter of what wind produced. But solar is growing rapidly, and generating most during the hottest months, when the grid is under the greatest strain to meet high demand."

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- D.J. Kayser