Light Snow Coatings This Week
The weather outlook shows a couple of clipper systems moving through the region this week. We'll see a chance of light snow on Wednesday and a better chance of snow Thursday night into Friday. The secondary clipper will be a little more pronounced with stronger winds and much colder temperatures pouring in on the backside of the system PM Friday into the weekend. Friday could warrant some blowing snow potential across parts of the state with gusts that could be around 20mph to 30mph, especially in the southwestern part of the state.
Snowfall Potential Through PM Friday
According to the ECMWF (European model), there is a chance for accumulating snow this week, mainly along and north of the Minnesota River Valley and especially north of the I-94 corridor. Some locations across the northern part of the state could see 3" to 6" total tallies, which would be enough to shovel and plow. Stay tuned...
A Siberian Slap This Weekend
Here's the 850mb temperature anomaly through the end of January early next week. Temps should still be fairly mild through midweek, but a fast moving clipper will open the floodgates for some pretty cold weather this weekend into early next week. This will be some of the coldest air we've had since just before Christmas. Daytime highs may only warm into the single digits with overnight lows in the subzero range once again. It'll be plenty cold, so bundle up!
Extended Temperature Outlook
The NBM extended temperature outlook for Minneapolis shows fairly mild temps through at least midweek before some pretty chilly air arrives late Friday into the weekend. This colder than average weather may stick around into the early part of February with overnight lows in the subzero range once again.
Bitterly Cold Wind Chills Ahead
The forecast lowest wind chill values over the next several days are trending much colder as we approach the weekend. Feels like temps on Saturday and Sunday will be in the -10s and -20s, which will be some of the coldest readings we've seen since just before Christmas.
Twin Cities January Summary
The first 23 days of January have been very warm and snowy. The average temperature is nearly +7.5F above average, which is good enough for the 7th warmest start to any January on record. We've also seen nearly 19.5" of snow, which is nearly 11" above average and good enough for the 7th snowiest start to any January on record.
7th Wettest January on Record
The Twin Cities has also seen more than 2" of liquid this January, which is the 7th wettest on record.
Precipitation Potential Through End of January
Here's the extended precipitation outlook from NOAA's WPC. We have a couple chances of snow Wednesday and again AM Friday with 0.10" to 0.20" liquid possible.
Snow Depth
As of Monday, January 23rd, the MSP Airport recorded 10" of snow on the ground. Interestingly, this tied for the 19th greatest snow depth on record for January 23rd!
January Snowfall
Here's how much snow has fallen across the region so far this month. More than a foot of snow has fallen from Sioux Falls, to the Twin Cities and St. Cloud, which is nearly +10.0" above average! The MSP Airport has seen nearly 19" of snow this month, which is the 7th snowiest start to any January on record (through January 23rd).
Seasonal Snowfall
Taking a look at snowfall since July 1st, many locations have seen above average amounts so far this season, but folks from near Sioux Falls to the Twin Cities and towards Duluth are nearly 20" to 30" above average through January 23rd. 52.5" of snow has fallen at the MSP Airport, which is the 4th snowiest start to any season on record.
Twin Cities Weather Outlook For Wednesday
The weather outlook for the Twin Cities on Wednesday, January 25th shows above average temperatures continuing with a high temp approaching 30F by the afternoon. Skies will remain mostly cloudy with winds turning more southerly through the day.
Weather Outlook on Wednesday
Temps across the region on Wednesday will generally warm into the 20s across much of the region, which will be nearly +5F to +10F above average. Skies will also stay mostly cloudy with light snow chances arriving late in the day from the northwest.
Meteograms For Minneapolis
The weather outlook for the Twin Cities through the day Wednesday shows temps starting in the mid 20s in the morning with highs warming to around 30F in the afternoon. Skies will be cloudy with areas of light snow through the day. Winds will turn northerly around midday and increase through the afternoon to around 10mph to 15mph.
Hourly Feels Like Temps
Feels like temps on Wednesday will hover in the 20s throughout much of the day and then will fall through the teens late in the afternoon/evening.
Weather Outlook
Weather conditions will remain active across the US over the next several days. Storm systems will continue to develop in the Southern US and lift northeast with areas of showers and storms across the Southern US with areas of heavy snow farther north.
Extended Temperature Outlook For Minneapolis
The extended temperature outlook for Minneapolis shows fairly mild temps through midweek. A clipper system will scoot through the region on Friday with snow and milder temps in the morning and tumbling temps in the afternoon. The weekend looks much colder with highs falling to well below average levels.
Extended Weather Outlook For Minneapolis
Weather conditions get a little more interesting during the second half of the week. Light snow showers will be Wednesday with a better chance of snow Thursday night into AM Friday. It'll then get quite cold this weekend and into early next week with highs trending well below average. It is going to be plenty cold around here for quite a few days. Bundle up!
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 Central US and especially across the Midwest as we slide into the early part of February. Meanwhile, folks in Florida will be a warmer than average.
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 and once again across the Western US.
Minor snow and then some serious cold
By Todd Nelson, filling in for Douglas
Have you been feeling a little gray lately? Blame it on the weather! According to the Twin Cities National Weather Service, the MSP Airport has been cloudy more than 70 percent of the time this month. January typically averages around 15 cloudy days; today will be the 18th, matching our cloudiest months of the year being November and December.
A lack of sunlight in the winter months can have dramatic impact on our mood. Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) impacts nearly 10 to 20 percent of the population with mild depression symptoms and is more common in women than in men. Treatments? Exercise, light therapy and phone a friend. If symptoms persist, ask your doctor. Hang in there, the first day of spring is less than 2 months away!
A light snow coating Wednesday gives way to a more robust clipper system Thursday night. An inch or two of snow will be possible AM Friday with blustery PM winds and falling temps. It'll be plenty cold this weekend with subzero wind chill values. Frozen nose hair type cold!
Extended Forecast
WEDNESDAY: Light snow coating. Winds: NW 10-15. High: 30.
WEDNESDAY NIGHT: Chance of light snow early. Winds: NNW 10-15. Low: 10.
THURSDAY: Peeks of sun. Clipper arrives overnight. Winds: WSW 7-12. High: 18.
FRIDAY: AM snow. Blustery PM & falling temps. Winds: WNW 10-20. Wake-up: 13. High: 34.
SATURDAY: Partly sunny. Much colder. Winds: WNW 5-10. Wake-up: 0. High: 6.
SUNDAY: More clouds. Feels like -10F to -20F. Winds: NW 5-10. Wake-up: -9. High: 4.
MONDAY: Still Nanook. Subzero wind chills. Winds: NNW 5-10. Wake-up: -10. High: 3.
TUESDAY: Cloudy & cold. Chance of snow. Winds: NNE 7-12. Wake-up: -10. High: 8.
This Day in Weather History
January 25th
1964: A record high temperature of 64 is set at Redwood Falls.
Average High/Low for Minneapolis
January 25th
Average High: 24F (Record: 58F set in 1944)
Average Low: 8F (Record: -31F set in 1904)
Record Rainfall: 0.50" set in 1950
Record Snowfall: 7.5" set in 1950
Sunrise/Sunset Times for Minneapolis
January 25th
Sunrise: 7:39am
Sunset: 5:10pm
Hours of Daylight: ~9 hours & 31 minutes
Daylight GAINED since yesterday: +2 Minutes & 17 Seconds
Daylight GAINED since Winter Solstice (December 21st): ~ 44 minutes
Moon Phase for January 25th at Midnight
2.3 Days Before First Quarter Moon
National High Temps on Wednesday
Temperatures in the Midwest and the Southeast will remain above average on Wednesday, but will be quite a bit colder than average across the Central and Southern Plains and into the Southwest.
National Weather Outlook Wednesday
The weather outlook for Wednesday shows a fairly intense area of low pressure developing in the Southern US with widely scattered showers and storms, some of which will be strong to severe with locally heavy rainfall in the Southeastern US. Areas of heavy snow will develop on the northern end of this storm with accumulating snow likely in the Central US to the Great Lakes and into parts of the Northeast.
National Weather Outlook
Weather conditions through midweek will be quite active as a storm system develops in the Southern US and lifts into the Northeast. Widespread showers and storms will develop in the Southern US with heavy rainfall, while heavy snow will push through the Central US.
Severe Weather Likely on Wednesday
According to NOAA's Storm Prediction Center, there is a Slight Risk of severe thunderstorms on Wednesday in yellow below. Damaging winds and isolated tornadoes will be possible along with locally heavy rainfall.
Extended Precipitation Outlook
According to NOAA's Weather Prediction Center, the extended precipitation outlook shows heavy precipitation across the Gulf Coast States and into the Eastern US. The Midwest will see some light precipitation, which will fall in the form of snow, while California will begin seeing some precipitation potential once again.
Snowfall Potential
According to the ECMWF (European model), heavy snow will be found across much of the high elevations in the Western US. There will also be decent snowfall potential in the across parts of the Central US into the Northeastern US.
Climate Stories
"NASA measures underground water flowing from Sierra to Central Valley"
"In a recent study, scientists found that a previously unmeasured source—water percolating through soil and fractured rock below California's Sierra Nevada mountains—delivers an average of 4 million acre feet (5 cubic kilometers) of water to the state's Central Valley each year. This underground source accounts for about 10% of all the water that enters this highly productive farmland each year from every source (including river inflows and precipitation). The Central Valley encompasses only 1% of U.S. farmland but produces 40% of the nation's table fruits, vegetables, and nuts annually. That's only possible because of intensive groundwater pumping for irrigation and river and stream flow captured in reservoirs. For at least 60 years, growers have been pumping more water from aquifers than can be replenished by natural sources, causing the ground level to sink and requiring wells to be drilled deeper and deeper."
"Never-before-seen time-lapse shows sunspot activity peaking on the Sun"
"Sunspots are planet-sized regions on the sun's surface that have increased magnetic shields and often appear dark or black on the surface of our star. These spots are often the originating point of coronal mass ejections or solar flares, which unleash solar energy into space. Now, an amateur astrophotographer has captured the peak of one of these spots in a breathtaking sunspot time-lapse. The time-lapse was captured by Şenol Şanlı between December 2 and December 27, 2022. The video follows an evolving cluster of sunspots known as A3176 and A3153, the former is located in the sun's northern hemisphere, while the latter resides in the sun's southern regions. To hone in on the target sunspots during the time-lapse, Şanlı digitally removed other sunspots in the footage."
"Flashes on the sun might help predict solar flares"
"A clue to predicting solar flares A team of scientists has found new clues in the sun's blazing upper atmosphere that could help predict when and where the sun's next flare might explode. Using data from NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), researchers from NorthWest Research Associates (NWRA) identified small signals in the upper layers of the solar atmosphere. These signals in this upper layer – the corona – can help identify which regions on the sun are more likely to produce solar flares. Solar flares are energetic bursts of light and particles released from the sun. The scientists found that above the regions about to flare, the corona produced small-scale flashes, like small sparklers before the big fireworks."