Prompts winter weather advisories as cold air moves in Friday night

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Our December thaw continues for another day across most of Minnesota.

So far this December is running 4.3-degrees warmer than average in the Twin Cities. That's pretty much par for the weather course in this El Nino-flavored winter. Most of the Upper Midwest is running 3 to 6+ degrees warmer than average so far this month.

Today marks the 8th straight warmer than average day across most of Minnesota. Highs make the low 40s again in the Twin Cities. A cold front slides south tonight, and temperatures cool about 10 degrees later this week. That's still above Saturday's average high of 25 degrees.

Our inbound cold front spreads a light icy mix across parts of Minnesota through tonight. NOAA's NAM 3-km resolution model paints the wintry mix zone. Precipitation will fall as light rain in parts of southern Minnesota, but change to light ice and snow overnight. Keep an eye out for a potential light glaze on outdoor surfaces.

It's still too early for specifics, but forecast models are still picking up on the notion of a strong low-pressure wave in the Upper Midwest by December 26. Early guidance on storm track and temperature profiles suggest a mix of rain, ice and snow across Minnesota from south to north. Here's NOAA's GFS model run. For entertainment purposes only this far out.

Weather and Climate News

Updraft® - Minnesota Weather News

Paul Huttner

Mild today; cooler weekend; post-Christmas storm potential

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