The March 11-12, 2023 "Super-Duper Clipper"
"The snowy winter of 2022-23 grinds on, with yet another large winter storm, this time with unlikely origins, producing widespread heavy snow and double-digit accumulations across northern Minnesota on March 11-12, 2023. A Super-DUPER Clipper The storm originated as a low-pressure area in the prairies of southwestern Canada on Friday, then moved east-southeastward across the northern Rockies, North Dakota, and northern Minnesota, before turning southeastward across Wisconsin on Sunday. This is a similar path to many "Clipper" systems, also called "Alberta Clippers," which are fast-moving systems common during the middle of winter, often producing 1-4 inches of light, powdery snow followed by strong winds and falling temperatures."
See more from the Climate Office HERE:
National Snowfall This Season
Snowfall has been quite impressive across parts of the nation this season, especially in the Western US, Midwest, the Great Lakes and the Northeast.
8th Snowiest Season at MSP
With more than 80" of snow, the MSP Airport is currently sitting at the 8th snowiest winter on record! We need less than 5" of additional snow to get into the top 5, but would need almost an additional 18" to get to the top spot.
More Snow Late Week
The weather models later this week are suggesting another wintry event later this week and into the weekend. It's still way too early to get specific, but areas of rain could turn to slushy snow late week with breezy winds.
Spring Flood Outlook
"Overall Outlook More Big Changes in the last two weeks... The early March updated outlook for spring flooding in the upper Mississippi, Minnesota, and Chippewa River basins has been upgraded to well above normal, particularly on the Mississippi from St. Paul downstream. The addition of more rain and snow over the past two weeks has raised the amount of water in the snowpack to very high levels for this time of year. Factors that could help alleviate at least some of the snowmelt threat are becoming less relevant the longer the snowpack holds on. And as always, the threat of seeing major flooding will still depend on what kind of rainfall/temperature patterns we get later in March and April. Due to the nature of this year's flood potential, we will issue an additional spring flood outlook on March 23rd, 2023."
See more from the NWS Twin Cities HERE:
Extended Temperature Outlook
The NBM extended temperature outlook for Minneapolis shows warmer midweek temps with readings up into the 40s. A larger storm system will move into the Midwest later this week with areas of rain and snow. Temperatures will fall into the 20s behind the system on Friday and Saturday, but should rebound fairly quickly as we head into next week.
Snow Depth
As of Monday, March 13th, the MSP Airport had 11" of snow on the ground. Much of the state of Minnesota and into northern Wisconsin has a pretty significant snowpack. Nearly 2ft of snow is on the ground near Lake Superior and almost 3ft on the ground near Marquette, MI.
Consecutive Days With At Least 1" of Snow Depth
Believe it or not, the MSP Airport has had at least 1" of snow on the ground for 105 consecutive days as of March 14th, which is tied for the 20th longest stretch on record. We'll definitely have snow on the ground for quite a while, so we'll definitely be making a run as we head through the rest March and into April.
Seasonal Snowfall
Many locations are nearly 2ft to 3ft above average snowfall for the season from Sioux Falls to the Twin Cities and north toward Duluth. Prior to this weekend's snowfall, MSP was sitting at 80" of snow for the season (since July 1st), which is the 3rd snowiest start to any season on record and nearly 37" above average. Duluth has seen nearly 116" of snow this season and the snowiest start to any season on record there.
Twin Cities Weather Outlook For Wednesday
The weather outlook for the Twin Cities on Wednesday, March 15th shows quiet weather in place for much of the day with sunshine and temps warming into the low/mid 40s, which will be at or slightly above average for this time of the year. Southerly winds will be breezy through the day with gusts approaching 25mph to near 30mph.
Weather Outlook on Wednesday
Temps across the region on Wednesday will warm into the 30s and 40s across much of the state, which will be at or slightly above average for this time of the year. Areas of snow will be possible across the far northwestern part of the state late in the day.
Meteograms For Minneapolis
The weather outlook for the Twin Cities through the day Wednesday will be quite a bit warmer than it was on Tuesday with temps starting in the upper 20s to near 30F in the morning and warming into the low/mid 40s in the afternoon with in creasing clouds. Southerly winds will be breezy through the day with gusts approaching 25mph to near 30mph
Hourly Feels Like Temps
Feels like temps on Wednesday will start around 20F in the morning and will warm into the mid/upper 30s by the afternoon. Southerly winds will be breezy through the entire day with gusts approaching 25mph to 30mph.
Weather Outlook
Weather conditions will remain quiet through midweek before a storm system moves into the Midwest with areas of rain and snow later this weekend. Winds will be breezy with falling temps in the Midwest Friday and into Saturday.
Severe Threat on Thursday
Strong to severe thunderstorms will be possible once again in the Southern US. At this point, there is a SLIGHT Risk of severe storms with hail, high winds and even tornadoes possible.
Extended Temperature Outlook For Minneapolis
Temps will warm into the 40s Wednesday, which will actually be a little warmer than average. However, a storm system moving through the region late week will be responsible for a drop in temperatures into the 20s.
Extended Weather Outlook For Minneapolis
Weather conditions will be fairly quiet through Wednesday with warmer temps and breezy south winds. Areas of rain and snow will develop Thursday into Friday with breezy winds and falling temps into Saturday. There could be some accumulating snow close to home with gradually warmer temps Sunday into Monday. It looks like we warm up fairly quickly into next week with temperatures back in the 40s.
8 to 14 Day Temperature Outlook
According to NOAA's Climate Prediction Center, the 8 to 14 day temperature outlook shows cooler than average temperatures across much of the Western US.
8 to 14 Day Precipitation Outlook
According to NOAA's Climate Prediction Center, the 8 to 14 Day precipitation outlook shows more active weather in place across the nation.
News Of A "Super-Duper" Alberta Clipper
By Paul Douglas
A warmer climate is flavoring all weather now. A roughly 7% increase in water vapor means more "fuel" available for developing storms. Last weekend's Alberta Clipper was supersized and much wetter than anything seen before.
According to Minnesota Senior Climatologist Dr. Kenny Blumenfeld, this storm appears to have produced more snow than any other storm of similar geographic origins, and dropped at least 50% more snow than the outstanding "Super Clipper" of January 2022. Yes, it's unusual to get 12-18" of snow from a clipper.
A high of 40F will feel pretty good today before the next storm pushes rain into town Thursday. A rapid changeover to wet snow is likely, with a potential of 3-6", on top of the 80.3" that has already fallen on MSP this winter.
Flurries and a cold wind linger into the weekend, but we thaw out next week. NOAA's GFS model predicts low 40s from late next week through the end of March. That would help to ensure a slow-motion meltdown. What about April? Sadly, that's unknowable.
Extended Forecast
WEDNESDAY: Clouds increase, milder. Winds: S 10-15. High: 42.
WEDNESDAY NIGHT: Cloudy. Chance of rain overnight. Winds: SSE 5-15. Low: 33.
THURSDAY: Rain changes to snow, 3-6" PM hours. Winds: NE 10-20. High: 35.
FRIDAY: Coating of flurries. Winds: N 10-20. Wake-up: 24. High: 27.
SATURDAY: Touch of January, more flakes. Winds: NW 10-20. Wake-up: 22. High: 24.
SUNDAY: Partly sunny and breezy. Winds: W 15-25. Wake-up: 15. High: 33.
MONDAY: Some sun, feels like March again. Winds: SW 10-15. Wake-up: 21. High: 39.
TUESDAY: Plenty of sunshine, milder. Winds: SE 7-12. Wake-up: 24. High: 42.
This Day in Weather History
March 15th
1941: The 'Ides of March Blizzard' occurs. Winds reached hurricane force at Twin Cities. 32 people died.
Average High/Low for Minneapolis
March 15th
Average High: 41F (Record: 70F set in 2015)
Average Low: 25F (Record: -7F set in 1897)
Record Rainfall: 0.85" set in 1945 & 2016
Record Snowfall: 5.0" set in 1899
Sunrise/Sunset Times for Minneapolis
March 15th
Sunrise: 7:25am
Sunset: 7:18pm
Hours of Daylight: ~11 hours & 53 minutes
Daylight GAINED since yesterday: +3 Minutes & 9 Seconds
Daylight GAINED since Winter Solstice (December 21st): ~ 3 hour & 7 minutes
Moon Phase for March 15th at Midnight
1.2 Days After Last Quarter Moon
National High Temps on Wednesday
Temperatures on Wednesday will be cooler than average in the Eastern US, where readings will be nearly -5F below average. Meanwhile, temperatures in the Plains will warm to nearly +10F to +15F above average readings with breezy south winds. The Western US will still be nearly -10F to -15F below average with areas of precipitation continuing.
National Weather Outlook Wednesday
The weather outlook for Wednesday shows widespread areas of rain and snow across the Intermountain-West. Showers and storms will be possible across the Southwestern US with locally heavy rains.
National Weather Outlook
Heavy snow will wrap up in the northern New England States with gusty winds. Meanwhile, a much larger storm system will move out of the Western US into the Central US with widespread showers and storms, some of which could be strong to severe in the Southern US on Thursday. Areas of heavy snow will make a return to parts of the Midwest and Great Lakes once again later this week.
Extended Precipitation Outlook
According to NOAA's Weather Prediction Center, the extended precipitation outlook shows heavier amounts across parts of the Central & Southern US with localized flooding possible. The heaviest precipitation will be found across the Western US and especially in the high elevations and in California.
Snowfall Potential
According to the ECMWF (European model), heavy snow will be found across much of the high elevations in the Western US and across the northern tier of the nation. Some spots in the Midwest could get some plowable snow once again.
Climate Stories
"AI re-creates what people see by reading their brain scans"
As neuroscientists struggle to demystify how the human brain converts what our eyes see into mental images, artificial intelligence (AI) has been getting better at mimicking that feat. A recent study, scheduled to be presented at an upcoming computer vision conference, demonstrates that AI can read brain scans and re-create largely realistic versions of images a person has seen. As this technology develops, researchers say, it could have numerous applications, from exploring how various animal species perceive the world to perhaps one day recording human dreams and aiding communication in people with paralysis. Many labs have used AI to read brain scans and re-create images a subject has recently seen, such as human faces and photos of landscapes. The new study marks the first time an AI algorithm called Stable Diffusion, developed by a German group and publicly released in 2022, has been used to do this. Stable Diffusion is similar to other text-to-image "generative" AIs such as DALL-E 2 and Midjourney, which produce new images from text prompts after being trained on billions of images associated with text descriptions.
See more from Science.org HERE:
"Rising Temperatures Due to Climate Change Will Reduce Coffee Production Globally, Study Suggests"
"Humans have been drinking coffee for hundreds of years, and in that time the rich, aromatic beverage has become not only a way to start the day, but part of culture all over the world. Coffee is so much a part of some people's routine that they couldn't imagine the day without it. But with rising global temperatures due to climate change, the world's coffee supply is becoming less reliable. Climate conditions that interfere with coffee yield have become more common in the past forty years, and a new study suggests that global heating is likely to result in interference with worldwide coffee production, The Guardian reported. "With climate change projections showing a continued rise in temperatures in the tropics is likely, we suggest that coffee production can expect ongoing systemic shocks," the authors of the study wrote. "As with other crops, a systemic risk to the global coffee trade is posed by synchronised crop failures."
See more from Echo Watch HERE:
"California Inundated By Heavy Rain (Again), Biden Declares Disaster"
"Torrential storms soaked California and set off flooding across the state this weekend. The heavy rainfall was caused by one of the many atmospheric river events to hit the state this winter. Californians have seen hundreds of inches of snow in the Sierra Nevada mountains and rain elsewhere in the state since January. Atmospheric rivers, long, narrow bands of moisture in the atmosphere that extend from the tropics, are responsible for most of the flood damage in the United States. But climate change is increasing the moisture and precipitation carried by atmospheric rivers, escalating the threat of flooding, landslides, runoff and damage to infrastructure to communities. A Pajaro River's levee breach, flash floods, evacuations, power loss, and storm-related deaths plagued California over the weekend. Governor Gavin Newsom has declared emergencies in over 30 counties and signed an executive order on Friday easing restrictions on capturing water from the storms. Also Friday, the Biden administration issued a disaster declaration for 35 counties and pledged funding for California's emergency response."
"California Floods: 15 Million Under Flood Watch As Yet Another 'Atmospheric River' Approaches"
"More than 15 million residents in northern and central California have been placed under flood watches as yet another band of intense rain approaches the state, which has been alleviated of its harshest drought conditions following a series of storms this year, though forecasters warn the effects of more rain and melting snow could be severe. Nearly all of California's Central Valley, up through the Oregon border, were placed under a flood watch Monday morning, while the Sierra Nevada Mountains are under a winter storm warning, according to the National Weather Service. The San Francisco Bay area, meanwhile, is under a high wind warning, as a long and narrow band of rain called an "atmospheric river" approaches the state, bringing a "moderate risk of excessive rainfall" through Wednesday."
