Better days
A near and dear friend said to me recently, "I'm so sick of this weather I am ready to jump off a dock into the lake, but I can't because the lake is STILL FROZEN!"
I'll have to keep an eye on her this week as we have seen ice out in the metro lakes.
We need a warm up. We'll get one this week, gradually.
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Many areas in Minnesota have seen more snow since March 15th than they did all winter.
Our persistent upper air pattern has featured a stubborn upper level low (polar vortex) over James Bay since mid January. This has kept Minnesota in a cool northerly flow since then.
April will be the 3rd month in a row with below average temps in the metro. The last time we had 3 or more consecutive months below average in the metro was nearly 4 years ago. May through August 2004 temperatures were about 2.5 degrees cooler than average. You may remember the cool summer of 2004.
Last year our last frost occurred on April 14th. This year? It could be May.
This week will feature a slow warming trend and more sun through Thursday. The next weather maker moves in Friday and Saturday according to some models. It may again bring a shot of heavy rain followed by a chilly weekend. Some of the models try to steer this feature south, but we will see.
Chaos reigns in the medium range forecast models. Some hint at a big warm up next week.
Stay tuned, and hang in there!
PH