Heavy snow late Saturday night into Sunday for southern Minnesota

The official weather stats from Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport show that there hasn’t been a single day with more than 1 inch of snow since Jan. 17. Our three-week stretch without a significant snow will end in the Twin Cities this weekend.

Saturday will be quiet, with some sunshine in central and southern Minnesota. A winter storm will spin moisture over roughly the southern third of Minnesota plus much of Wisconsin overnight Saturday night into Sunday.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s North American Mesoscale forecast model shows the potential snow pattern Saturday evening through Sunday afternoon:

The heaviest snow from this system is expected to be over southern Minnesota. I see the potential for 3 to 5 inches of snow in the Twin Cities metro area late Saturday night through Sunday morning. Far southern parts of the metro area could approach 6 inches of snow.

Travel will be affected in the metro area, southern Minnesota and much of western Wisconsin late Saturday night into Sunday as visibilities drop and many roads become snow-covered and slippery.

Here’s the National Weather Service discussion and snow forecast for Saturday night through Sunday:

Note that the storm track may change a bit, so check forecast updates. The speed of the low-pressure system and its strength may also lead to shifts in the band of heaviest snow.

A winter storm watch has been issued for much of southern Minnesota and parts of Wisconsin from late Saturday night into Sunday:

The winter storm watch begins at 9 p.m. Saturday in portions of southwestern Minnesota and at midnight Saturday night in south-central and southeastern Minnesota.

You can hear updated weather information on the MPR network, and you’ll see updated weather info on the MPR News live weather blog.

I anticipate that a combination of winter weather advisories and winter storm warnings will be issued for this storm before it hits.

Weekend temperatures and wind chills

Saturday morning lows will be below zero in western Minnesota, with wind chills in the teens below zero. Twin Cities metro area wind chills will be near zero Saturday morning.

Saturday afternoon highs reach the 20s in southern Minnesota with teens in central and northern Minnesota:

Saturday afternoon wind chills are mainly in the single digits above zero:

Sunday highs are in the teens northwest, with 20s to the southeast:

Sunday afternoon wind chills range from the single digits northwest to 20s in the far southeast::

Snow depths

If you have outdoor plans this weekend, you’ll be happy to know that there’s plenty of snow on the ground across much of Minnesota.

Here’s the latest snow depth map, courtesy of the Minnesota State Climatology Office and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources:

Much of northern Minnesota has 18 inches or more of snow cover, and parts of the northeast have between 24 and 36 inches of snow on the ground.

The lower snow depths of southern Minnesota will change of course, with the anticipated snowfall of Saturday night into Sunday.

Weekend events

If you’re looking for weekend activity options, Explore Minnesota has a list of many events and festivals around the state of Minnesota. Among the events/festivals this weekend is Polar Fest in Detroit Lakes, offering events from ice sculpting to a 5K run to “frozen fireworks at the beach.”

Detroit Lakes will have highs in the teens this weekend, with a few Saturday flurries possible.

Travel issues will make it hard to get to some events in southern Minnesota Sunday morning, but many events in southern Minnesota are also up and running on Saturday.

Programming note

You can hear my live weather updates on MPR News at 7:35 a.m., 9:35 a.m. and 4:35 p.m. each Saturday and Sunday.