Snow and ice Monday, then a temperature roller coaster
Sunshine prevails starting Tuesday
A winter storm will bring areas of snow and ice Monday, followed by the return of colder weather and plentiful of sunshine.
Monday’s Forecast
Low pressure is sliding just south of Minnesota Monday, and ahead of that storm, warmer air has filtered across the state. Most of the state saw temperatures rise slightly overnight, and highs will be predominantly in the 20s and 30s.
The storm is also bringing light snow across Minnesota on Monday, with most of the state seeing less than one inch. However, a few places are seeing higher amounts. In northern Minnesota, there could be a band of 2 to 3 inches of snow from about Moorhead to Bemidji, and into the Arrowhead.
That corridor is already seeing snow as of Monday morning.
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The other area that will see more snow is southern Minnesota, since that part of the state is closest to the center of the storm. Snow totals could be 2 or 3 inches for southeastern Minnesota, with a couple isolated higher amounts. The bigger problem is that due to the milder air, light freezing rain could precede the snow in southern Minnesota, leading to icy roads.
Because of the potential ice and snow, most of southern Minnesota is under a Winter Weather Advisory.
The system moves across the state through the day, and out of eastern Minnesota by late Monday night.
Extended forecast
Behind the storm, colder air settles back in, and temperatures will not get back to average highs until Thursday for western Minnesota and Friday for the eastern part of the state. Most highs will remain above 0 during the cold snap, but all of the state will likely see morning lows below zero Wednesday and Thursday morning.
Much of week ahead will see a large swing from day to night temperatures due to clearer skies. The clearer skies allow temperatures to really drop overnight, but it also means lots of sunshine during the day. Here is the temperatures trend for the Twin Cities through the weekend:
After we get through the cold air behind Monday’s storm, the state really warms-up by the end of the week, with the entire state in the 30s by Friday and a few 40s possible by Sunday. We also stay under mostly sunny skies, with no big storms on the horizon.
Programming note
You can hear my live weather updates on Minnesota Public Radio at 7:48 a.m. Monday through Friday morning.