Frigid temperatures this weekend prompt cold weather advisories

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We have more scattered snow showers Thursday with light accumulations and higher winds from the northwest at 10-20 mph. Temperatures will be cooler, in the 20s with overnight lows dropping into the teens. 

Wind chill values will be subzero for much of the state to barely above zero in eastern Minnesota by early Friday.

Minnesota’s North Shore gets a break from the heaviest snow. Hovland had 29 inches as of Wednesday evening. Silver Bay had 24 inches.

The moderate to heavier lake effect snows shift east Thursday to the south shore of northern Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan as winds become more northwest.

We have more snow showers Thursday as even colder air pushes across Minnesota. Most snow will be generally light with under 1 inch across southern Minnesota but pockets of northern Minnesota could see slightly higher amounts in the 1 to 3 inch range.

Highly amplified pattern creating extremes of cold and warmth

We can blame Alaska for the unusual cold coming to Minnesota. An unusually strong ridge of mid to upper-level high pressure is pushing deep into far western North America through Alaska. 

High pressure aloft is a measurement of a large warm air mass. Warm air rises, so more air aloft indicates warmth. Conversely, when we measure lower pressure at the mid levels of the atmosphere this is an indication of a colder air mass since colder air is dense, compact and hugs the lower levels of the atmosphere.

In fact, the evening weather balloon launch in Fairbanks, Alaska measured a height of 5,790 meters for the level of 500mb of pressure. This is a new record for November. Anchorage also measured 5,790, their second highest for November. 

Again, this measures air at higher levels of the atmosphere than normal, an indication of the overall warm air mass.

Record upper atmospheric pressure in Alaska

While Minnesota will experience temperatures 15 to 25 degrees colder than normal the next couple of days, portions of arctic Alaska will be 30 to 40 degrees warmer than normal.

By Friday morning, wind chills across Minnesota will range from minus 10 to 5 degrees.

Temperatures and wind chills will drop more Saturday night into early Sunday. Many will see their first single digit or even subzero temperature readings of the season and wind chills will be mainly below zero early Sunday.

Next week brings warmer temperatures with perhaps 40 possible by Thanksgiving.

Weather and Climate News

Updraft® - Minnesota Weather News

Sven Sundgaard

Author

We have more scattered snow showers Thursday with light accumulations and higher winds from the northwest. Temperatures will be in the 20s with overnight lows dropping into the teens. Wind chill values will be subzero for much of the state.

We have more scattered snow showers Thursday with light accumulations and higher winds from the northwest at 10-20 mph. Temperatures will be cooler, in the 20s with overnight lows dropping into the teens. Wind chill values will be subzero for much of the state to barely above zero in eastern Minnesota by early Friday.

Subzero wind chills on the way; snow showers linger

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