Updraft® - Minnesota Weather News

It's still March, Minnesota. Expect a chilly weekend, another sloppy system next week.

Sunny with highs in the 30s this weekend. More rain and snow likely next week.

NOAA six- to 10-day temperature outlook.
NOAA six- to 10-day temperature outlook.
NOAA

Welcome to the last week of March, Minnesota.

This time of year can be frustrating for those of us who want to leap directly into spring weather. But I always try and remind people, it’s still March. And March is a month that’s usually more winter than spring in these parts.

The next week shows a cool bias for Minnesota. The average high and low for the Twin Cities are 47 and 26 degrees this weekend.

Upside-down temperatures Thursday

Bright sunshine graces central and northern Minnesota Thursday. But thicker clouds covered areas from the Twin Cities southward.

That produced an upside-down temperature pattern across Minnesota Thursday afternoon. It hit 50 in Fergus Falls Thursday afternoon and 49 in Bemidji. See how temperatures are warmer in the northern half of the state compared to the 30s in the south?

Temperatures Thursday afternoon
Temperatures Thursday afternoon.
Oklahoma Mesonet

Friday cold front

A cold front sails through Minnesota with gusty winds and colder temperatures. NOAA’s surface maps sequence through Saturday shows the fronts sweeping south through Minnesota, with chilly Canadian high-pressure nudging in this weekend from the north.

Surface weather maps through Saturday
Surface weather maps through Saturday.
NOAA

Northern Minnesota looks likely to pick up an inch or two of snow centered on Ely and the BWCA.

Snowfall projection
Snowfall projection for northern Minnesota.
Duluth National Weather Service

Highs top out around 40 in the Twin Cities with 30s up north.

Forecast high temperatures Friday pm
Forecast high temperatures Friday.
NOAA

Sunny, cool weekend

This last weekend of March will feel like early March. We’ll see plenty of sunshine across Minnesota, but temperatures will be chilly.

Forecast high temperatures Saturday
Forecast high temperatures Saturday.
NOAA

Messy storm next week?

Temperatures moderate a bit next Monday and Tuesday.

Forecast high temperatures Monday
Forecast high temperatures Monday.
NOAA

Forecast models still suggest a sloppy storm with rain and snow toward the middle of next week. Here’s NOAA’s GFS model output for next Wednesday into Thursday.

NOAA GFS model
NOAA GFS model Wednesday and Thursday, March 30, 31.
NOAA via tropical tidbits

There are signs of warmer air in about 10 days to two weeks.

Stay tuned.

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