Thaw continues; shot at 40 degrees Wednesday
Sun's energy melting snow and warming the air mass
We’re melting some snow out there Tuesday across much of Minnesota. A new feature of our weather through Wednesday is clear blue skies and bright February sunshine.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s GOES-16 TruColor loop above shows the clearing trend from the predawn hours into midday Tuesday. Note the city lights of the Twin Cities and other cities at night, and the Minnesota River is clearly visible from space within the snow cover during the daytime sunshine.
Temperatures are above the thawing point today at many locations. Highs Tuesday will reach the mid-30s in most towns.
Watch out for refreeze Tuesday night and early Wednesday as temperatures fall well below the freezing point at night in this type of weather pattern.
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Wednesday looks like the mildest day this week. Expect more bright sunshine, and temperatures will likely nudge a few degrees warmer than Tuesday. High will push well into the 30s again, and some locations will likely approach 40 degrees Wednesday afternoon.
Big storm passes south Thursday
A potent snow system will track across eastern Iowa and southern Wisconsin Thursday. The southern storm track means Minnesota will escape the bulk of this snow event.
We may see a few snow showers, but heavy snowfall will lay out on either side of a zone from Des Moines, Iowa, to Madison, Wis. If you are planning to travel south or east, expect heavy snow in these areas Thursday.
Minnesota will cool down a bit Friday with highs back below freezing into the 20s. But the weekend brings another thaw, and temperatures could push 40 degrees again by early next week.
