Live long enough and you'll see (almost) everything. Including a March-like February. Last month was a whopping 13 degrees warmer than average at MSP with 10 days in the 50s and no subzero lows.
It was the warmest meteorological winter (December through February) since the U.S. Signal Service started keeping daily records in downtown St. Paul back in 1871. More than 4 degrees warmer than the 30-year (1991-2020) average, and 11.1 inches of snow at MSP since Dec. 1, the ninth least on record. Last winter at this time we had already seen 57.6 inches. Hard to believe we're living in the same city.
With sunshine I see 50s today, low 60s Saturday and a taste of May on Sunday. If the metro hits 70 on Sunday it'll be the earliest 70 on record.
Thunderstorms late Sunday mark the leading edge of slightly cooler air, mostly 50s and maybe a 60 next week. Early spring? Sure, why not. Meanwhile brushfires torched an area in Texas the size of Delaware. And the Sierra Nevadas will see 10-13 feet of snow and hurricane-force winds.
