Frigid temperatures this weekend prompt cold weather advisories

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(See mid afternoon update regarding updated warnings/advisories)

If you need to travel in northern Minnesota this weekend, it’s best to get that travel done this Saturday. I suspect that some roads will be impassable on Sunday due to heavy snow and strong winds. 

Forecast models agree that this weekend’s winter storm will hit northern Minnesota the hardest. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s North American Mesoscale (NAM) forecast model shows the potential precipitation pattern from 5 p.m. Saturday through 10 p.m. on Sunday:

NOAA’s High-Resolution Rapid-Refresh (HRRR) model shows a similar precipitation pattern:

Notice the tight spacing of the isobars Sunday and Sunday night, indicating very strong winds.

Snow totals from Saturday evening through Sunday evening are expected to be in the 6 to 8 inch range in much of northwestern Minnesota:

North-central and northeastern Minnesota will probably see many 8 inch or greater snow totals:

Some spots along and a bit inland from the North Shore could tally over 12 inches of snow.

The Twin Cities metro area will have a chance of occasional light snow showers Saturday evening and overnight, followed by a chance of scattered rain/snow showers on Sunday. Parts of the north metro have the potential for snow accumulations of up to one inch by Sunday morning. 

You can hear updated weather information for Minnesota and western Wisconsin on the Minnesota Public Radio News 

, and you can see updated weather info on the MPR News 

Updated Minnesota road conditions can be found 

. Wisconsin road conditions can be found 

Winter storm warnings start at 6 p.m. in northeastern North Dakota and in several northwestern Minnesota counties that border the Red River. There’s a winter storm watch from Moorhead to Detroit Lakes to Fergus Falls that starts Saturday evening:

Portions of that watch may be included in warnings that are updated later today by the 

Here are details of the winter storm warnings that begin at 9 p.m. this Saturday in northwestern and north-central Minnesota:

By  midnight winter storm warnings expand to cover the remainder of the northern third of Minnesota, plus parts of northwestern Wisconsin.  Winter storm warnings continue through Sunday and Sunday evening in most areas, and until 6 a.m. Monday in northeastern Minnesota and northwestern Wisconsin. Portions of Cook County in northeastern Minnesota will be in a blizzard warning from 5 a.m. Sunday to 6 a.m. Monday.

Here are details of the warnings in northeastern Minnesota:

The blizzard warning for portions of Cook County starts at 5 a.m. Sunday:

Updates to the warnings will be posted by the 

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Here is a mid-afternoon update on the winter storm warnings and advisories

The NWS has expanded the northwestern Minnesota winter storm warning southward to around Detroit Lakes, and a winter weather advisory for lesser snow amounts includes Fergus Falls:

Winter weather advisories also have been posted for Saturday night and Sunday from Brainerd to Hinckley (beginning at 8 p.m. Saturday and over to Rice Lake and Hayward in Wisconsin (beginning at 10 p.m. Saturday):

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Saturday highs will be mainly in the 30s across central and southern Minnesota plus western Wisconsin. Far northern Minnesota will see some 20s.

Sunday highs range from 20s in the far north to lower 40s in the far south:

An arctic front spreads much colder air across Minnesota and Wisconsin Sunday night and Monday, with Monday highs in the single-digits north to teens south:

Strong winds will give us sub-zero wind chill temps on Monday, so find your warmest coat and gloves by then!

Twin Cities highs are projected to reach the lower 20s Tuesday, then around 30 degrees on Wednesday, followed by mid 30s Thursday and lower 30s on Friday.

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

A winter storm will bring heavy snow and fierce winds to northern Minnesota and parts of northwestern Wisconsin Saturday night through Sunday night. We have the updated snow forecast, plus a look at arctic chill for Monday.

Winter storm will dump heavy snow in northern Minnesota Saturday night into Sunday night

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