Wintry mix spreads across Minnesota

MPR News helps you turn down the noise and build shared understanding. Turn up your support for this public resource and keep trusted journalism accessible to all. 

Turn Up Your Support

Our average Twin Cities high temperature is only 40 degrees on March 13. Parts of the metro area could touch 60 this Saturday afternoon. That’s our average Twin Cities high on April 19. There may be some flip-flop sightings Saturday afternoon….maybe even a few people enjoying ice-cream cones as they take their walk.

Saturday highs will be mainly in the 50s across the remainder of Minnesota and western Wisconsin, with a few 40s in far northeastern Minnesota.

Sunday highs will be mainly in the 40s, with the Twin Cities metro area and parts of southeastern Minnesota touching 50 degrees:

Northeastern Minnesota may top out in the 30s.

Winds pick up on Sunday, with gusts of 20 to 25 mph in many areas:

Plotted gusts are in knots, with 20 knots equal to 23 mph. Wind gusts could approach 30 mph Sunday afternoon in southwestern Minnesota.

Back to temperatures, Twin Cities metro area highs are projected to reach 40 degrees on Monday, followed by lower 40s Tuesday and upper 40s Wednesday through Friday.

Snow returns Sunday night and lingers into Monday

A strong low pressure system is bringing heavy snow to portions of Colorado today. That low pressure system could spread showers into southwestern Minnesota Sunday evening, then the showers turn to snow Sunday night as the precipitation spreads northeastward. There’s the potential for heavy snow in portions of southern Minnesota late Sunday night and Monday.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s North American Mesoscale (NAM) forecast model shows the potential precipitation pattern for Sunday evening through Monday afternoon: 

A winter storm watch starts at 10 p.m. Sunday in southwestern Minnesota and continues until 1 p.m. Monday. South-central Minnesota has a winter storm watch that starts at 1 a.m. Monday and continues until 4 p.m. Monday:

Here are details of the winter storm watch:

URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE National Weather Service Twin Cities/Chanhassen MN 322 AM CST Sat Mar 13 2021 ...HEAVY SNOW POSSIBLE ACROSS SOUTHERN MINNESOTA LATE SUNDAY NIGHT INTO MONDAY... .A Winter Storm Watch is in effect late Sunday night through early Monday afternoon south of a line from Canby, to Olivia, Gaylord, Le Center, and Owatonna. A band of precipitation will lift northeast into southern Minnesota late Sunday night, quickly becoming all snow. The snow will be heavy at times through Monday morning, then taper off during the afternoon. Total accumulation of 5 to 8 inches are possible. MNZ064-065-067-073>076-082>085-091>093-132100- /O.NEW.KMPX.WS.A.0005.210315T0600Z-210315T2100Z/ Yellow Medicine-Renville-Sibley-Redwood-Brown-Nicollet-Le Sueur- Watonwan-Blue Earth-Waseca-Steele-Martin-Faribault-Freeborn- Including the cities of Granite Falls, Olivia, Gaylord, Redwood Falls, New Ulm, St Peter, Le Sueur, St James, Mankato, Waseca, Owatonna, Fairmont, Blue Earth, and Albert Lea 322 AM CST Sat Mar 13 2021 ...WINTER STORM WATCH IN EFFECT FROM LATE SUNDAY NIGHT THROUGH MONDAY AFTERNOON... * WHAT...Heavy snow possible. Total snow accumulations of 5 to 8 inches possible. * WHERE...Portions of central, south central, southwest and west central Minnesota. * WHEN...From late Sunday night through Monday afternoon. * IMPACTS...Travel could be very difficult. The hazardous conditions could impact the morning or evening commute. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... Monitor the latest forecasts for updates on this situation.

The Twin Cities metro area is not in a winter storm watch for Monday, but we’ll see some snow, which could be mixed with rain at times. Models show an inch or two of snow in the metro area on Monday, with the highest totals in the south and southwest metro….check updates.

You can hear updated weather information for Minnesota and western Wisconsin on the MPR 

, and you’ll see updated weather info on the MPR News 

The same low pressure system that will bring snow to southern Minnesota late Sunday night and Monday is expected to dump very heavy snow on parts of Colorado, southern Wyoming, southwestern South Dakota and western Nebraska this weekend.

Parts of Colorado will see 18 to 30 inches of new snow this weekend. Here are the forecast snow amounts in Colorado:

Winter storm warnings cover much of that area:

Here are Colorado winter storm warning details:

URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE National Weather Service Denver CO 420 AM MST Sat Mar 13 2021 ...POWERFUL WINTER STORM ON TRACK FOR THIS WEEKEND... .A significant late season winter storm now across Utah and Arizona will move to near the Four Corners region by midday today, and then track east/northeast across southeast Colorado Sunday. This track will bring significant snowfall to much of northeast and north central Colorado, and likely result in difficult if not impossible travel from late Saturday afternoon or evening through Sunday and Sunday night. The most severe conditions from deep accumulating snow will likely occur in and near the Front Range Mountains and Foothills where 2 to 4 feet of snow may fall, and along the I-25 Urban Corridor where up to 2 feet of snow can be expected. The favored locations for the heaviest snow totals along the I-25 Corridor will be from Boulder north through the Fort Collins area. Temperatures will be warm enough to bring a mix of rain and snow to areas east of a Fort Morgan to Limon line today into Saturday evening, but temperatures should turn cold enough there Saturday night into Sunday for mostly snow. Winds are also expected to increase by Sunday, with blowing and drifting snow possible across the plains. COZ038>041-043-132215- /O.CON.KBOU.WS.W.0004.210313T1200Z-210315T1200Z/ Larimer County Below 6000 Feet/Northwest Weld County-Boulder And Jefferson Counties Below 6000 Feet/West Broomfield County-North Douglas County Below 6000 Feet/Denver/West Adams and Arapahoe Counties/East Broomfield County-Elbert/Central and East Douglas Counties Above 6000 Feet-Central and South Weld County- Including the cities of Elbert, Roggen, Arvada, Larkspur, Boulder, City of Denver, Aurora, Littleton, Brighton, Highlands Ranch, Fort Lupton, Loveland, Kiowa, Eaton, Longmont, Fondis, Denver International Airport, Golden, Parker, Castle Rock, Lakewood, Fort Collins, Greeley, Nunn, and Hereford 420 AM MST Sat Mar 13 2021 ...WINTER STORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 6 AM MDT MONDAY... * WHAT...Heavy snow expected by late this morning and continuing into Sunday. Total snow accumulations of 12 to 24 inches expected, with locally heavier amounts possible near Boulder and Fort Collins. Winds could gust as high as 35 mph. * WHERE...Fort Collins, Boulder and the western suburbs of Denver, Denver, Castle Rock, and Greeley. * WHEN...Until 6 AM MDT Monday. * IMPACTS...Travel could be very difficult to impossible. * ADDITIONAL DETAILS...Conditions will deteriorate today as the storm arrives, but the most severe conditions will likely hold off until Saturday evening. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... If you must travel, keep an extra flashlight, food, and water in your vehicle in case of an emergency. The latest road conditions for Colorado can be obtained by calling 5 1 1 or by going to www.cotrip. org

We return to Daylight Saving Time at 2 a.m. this Sunday:

Most of our phones and laptops make the change automatically, but if you have a clock or wristwatch that needs human intervention, Saturday night is the time to make the change.

You can hear my live weather updates on MPR News at 7:35 a.m., 9:35 a.m. and 4:39 p.m. each Saturday and Sunday.

Weather and Climate News

Updraft® - Minnesota Weather News

Ron Trenda

Author

It’ll feel like April today, and there could be some flip-flop sightings Saturday afternoon. March weather returns on Sunday, and parts of Minnesota could see heavy snow Sunday night and Monday. We have your weekend forecast details, plus a look at the week ahead.

April weather today, March on Sunday; heavy snow southern Minn. Sunday night/Monday?

Go Deeper.

Like this?

News you can use in your inbox