Saturday-Sunday snow update; Twin Cities will reach top 10 season snowfall

Updated at 3:15 p.m.

We’ll have many hours of snow this Saturday and Saturday evening. Snow lovers are probably happy to see the snow, but many people are waiting for spring-like weather.

The snow will continue into late Saturday night and Sunday in northern Minnesota and northwestern Wisconsin, with intermittent snow possible Sunday in central and southern Minnesota and west-central Wisconsin.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s North American Mesoscale (NAM) forecast model shows the potential precipitation pattern from noon Saturday to 10 p.m. Sunday:

Potential weekend snow totals

Weekend snow totals are expected to be more than 6 inches in most of the northern half of Minnesota:

Twin Cities metro area totals are expected to be mainly in the range of 3 to 5 inches, with the heaviest snow Saturday afternoon into early Saturday evening.

Double-digit weekend snow totals are expected in portions of northeastern Minnesota:

Here are forecast weekend snow totals in eastern North Dakota and northwestern Minnesota:

Warnings and advisories

Portions of northwestern Minnesota plus and much of North Dakota remain in a blizzard warning through Saturday and Saturday evening, with winter storm warnings elsewhere:

Here are details of the Minnesota portion of the blizzard warning:

URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE National Weather Service Grand Forks ND 223 AM CST Sat Mar 11 2023 MNZ005-008-013>015-022-027-030-040-121800- /O.UPG.KFGF.WS.A.0004.230312T0600Z-230312T1800Z/ /O.NEW.KFGF.WW.Y.0016.230312T0600Z-230312T1800Z/ /O.CON.KFGF.BZ.W.0006.230311T1200Z-230312T0600Z/ Roseau-East Marshall-Pennington-Red Lake-East Polk-Mahnomen- West Becker-West Otter Tail-Grant- Including the cities of Roseau, Warroad, Greenbush, Newfolden, Middle River, Grygla, Thief River Falls, Red Lake Falls, Fosston, Fertile, McIntosh, Erskine, Mahnomen, Naytahwaush, Waubun, Detroit Lakes, Fergus Falls, Elbow Lake, Hoffman, Ashby, Herman, and Barrett 223 AM CST Sat Mar 11 2023 ...BLIZZARD WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM 6 AM THIS MORNING TO MIDNIGHT CST TONIGHT... ...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM MIDNIGHT CST TONIGHT TO 1 PM CDT SUNDAY... * WHAT...For the Blizzard Warning, blizzard conditions expected. Winds gusting as high as 40 mph. For the Winter Weather Advisory, blowing snow expected. Total snowfall accumulations of 6 to 9 inches through Sunday. * WHERE...Portions of northwest and west central Minnesota. * WHEN...For the Blizzard Warning, from 6 AM this morning to midnight CST tonight. For the Winter Weather Advisory, from midnight CST tonight to 1 PM CDT Sunday. * IMPACTS...Travel will be very difficult to impossible. Widespread blowing snow could significantly reduce visibility. * ADDITIONAL DETAILS...The lowest visibilities will occur with heavy snowfall rates this morning. There will be a lull in impacts this afternoon and evening before northerly winds increase overnight tonight. Additional hazardous travel conditions are expected due to blowing snow Sunday morning as a result. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... Travel should be restricted to emergencies only. If you must travel, have a winter survival kit with you. If you get stranded, stay with your vehicle. Slow down and use caution while traveling. The latest road conditions for North Dakota can be found at travel.dot.nd.gov and for Minnesota at 511mn.org, or by calling 5 1 1 in either state.

Here are winter storm warning details:

URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE National Weather Service Grand Forks ND 223 AM CST Sat Mar 11 2023 MNZ006-009-016-017-023-024-028-031-032-121800- /O.CAN.KFGF.WS.A.0004.230312T0600Z-230312T1800Z/ /O.EXT.KFGF.WS.W.0003.230311T1200Z-230312T1800Z/ Lake Of The Woods-North Beltrami-North Clearwater-South Beltrami- South Clearwater-Hubbard-East Becker-East Otter Tail-Wadena- Including the cities of Baudette, Red Lake, Redby, Ponemah, Bagley, Clearbrook, Bemidji, Alida, Ebro, Lake Itasca, Long Lost Lake, Lower Rice Lake, Roy Lake, Upper Rice Lake, Park Rapids, Wolf Lake, Perham, New York Mills, Parkers Prairie, Henning, Battle Lake, Wadena, and Menahga 223 AM CST Sat Mar 11 2023 ...WINTER STORM WARNING NOW IN EFFECT FROM 6 AM CST THIS MORNING TO 1 PM CDT SUNDAY... * WHAT...Heavy snow expected. Total snow accumulations of 5 to 8 inches. Winds gusting as high as 35 mph. * WHERE...Portions of central, north central, northwest and west central Minnesota. * WHEN...From 6 AM CST this morning to 1 PM CDT Sunday. * IMPACTS...Travel will be very difficult. Widespread blowing snow will significantly reduce visibility. 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 North Dakota can be found at travel.dot.nd.gov and for Minnesota at 511mn.org, or by calling 5 1 1 in either state.

The winter storm warning runs from Saturday afternoon through Sunday evening for Duluth and up along the North Shore of Lake Superior:

Here are the details:

URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE National Weather Service Duluth MN 954 AM CST Sat Mar 11 2023 MNZ037-120400- /O.EXT.KDLH.WS.W.0008.230311T1554Z-230313T0600Z/ Carlton and South St. Louis- Including the city of Duluth 954 AM CST Sat Mar 11 2023 ...WINTER STORM WARNING NOW IN EFFECT UNTIL 1 AM CDT MONDAY... * WHAT...Heavy snow. Additional snow accumulations of 7 to 12 inches, except 10 to 16 inches for the higher terrain of the North Shore. * WHERE...Carlton and South St. Louis County. This includes the Tribal Lands of the Fond du Lac Band. * WHEN...Until 1 AM CDT Monday. * IMPACTS...Travel could be very difficult to impossible. 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 can be obtained by calling 5 1 1. Road conditions can also be found at 511mn.org for Minnesota or 511wi.gov for Wisconsin.

Parts of southern Lake County could see 18 inches of snow:

URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE National Weather Service Duluth MN 954 AM CST Sat Mar 11 2023 MNZ020-120400- /O.EXT.KDLH.WS.W.0008.230311T1554Z-230313T0600Z/ Southern Lake- Including the cities of Two Harbors and Silver Bay 954 AM CST Sat Mar 11 2023 ...WINTER STORM WARNING NOW IN EFFECT UNTIL 1 AM CDT MONDAY... * WHAT...Heavy snow. Additional snow accumulations of 12 to 18 inches. Winds gusting as high as 35 mph. * WHERE...Southern Lake County. * WHEN...Until 1 AM CDT Monday. * IMPACTS...Travel could be very difficult to impossible. Patchy blowing snow could significantly reduce visibility. 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 can be obtained by calling 5 1 1. Road conditions can also be found at 511mn.org for Minnesota or 511wi.gov for Wisconsin.

A winter storm warning continues today through Sunday evening for several counties in far northwestern Wisconsin.

A winter weather advisory runs from Saturday afternoon through Sunday evening in Rice Lake, Wis., and Hayward, Wis.

Winter weather advisories (blue) cover much of central Minnesota and parts of southwestern Minnesota Saturday and into Saturday night:

Here are advisory details in central Minnesota:

URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE National Weather Service Twin Cities/Chanhassen MN 1024 AM CST Sat Mar 11 2023 MNZ042>044-049>051-057>059-065-066-073-120100- /O.CON.KMPX.WW.Y.0015.000000T0000Z-230312T0900Z/ Todd-Morrison-Mille Lacs-Stearns-Benton-Sherburne-Kandiyohi- Meeker-Wright-Renville-McLeod-Redwood- Including the cities of Long Prairie, Little Falls, Princeton, St Cloud, Sauk Rapids, Elk River, Willmar, Litchfield, Monticello, Olivia, Hutchinson, and Redwood Falls 1024 AM CST Sat Mar 11 2023 ...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 4 AM CDT SUNDAY... * WHAT...Snow. Total snow accumulations of 4 to 6 inches. Winds gusting as high as 35 mph. * WHERE...Portions of central, east central and southwest Minnesota. * WHEN...Until 4 AM CDT Sunday. * IMPACTS...Plan on slippery road conditions. Patchy blowing snow could significantly reduce visibility. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... Slow down and use caution while traveling. The latest road conditions for the state you are calling from can be obtained by calling 5 1 1. Road conditions can also be found at 511mn.org for Minnesota or 511wi.gov for Wisconsin.

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3:15 p.m. update

Several Twin Cities metro area counties have been added to the winter weather advisory Saturday evening into the overnight hours:

Here are advisory details for Carver County and Hennepin County:

URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE National Weather Service Twin Cities/Chanhassen MN 306 PM CST Sat Mar 11 2023 MNZ060-068-120600- /O.EXA.KMPX.WW.Y.0015.000000T0000Z-230312T0900Z/ Hennepin-Carver- Including the cities of Minneapolis, Chanhassen, Chaska, and Victoria 306 PM CST Sat Mar 11 2023 ...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 4 AM CDT SUNDAY... * WHAT...Snow. Additional snow accumulations 2 to 4 inches. * WHERE...Hennepin and Carver Counties. * WHEN...Until 4 AM CDT Sunday. * IMPACTS...Plan on slippery road conditions. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... Slow down and use caution while traveling. The latest road conditions for the state you are calling from can be obtained by calling 5 1 1. Road conditions can also be found at 511mn.org for Minnesota or 511wi.gov for Wisconsin.

Here are advisory details for Ramsey, Anoka and Washington County:

URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE National Weather Service Twin Cities/Chanhassen MN 306 PM CST Sat Mar 11 2023 MNZ061>063-WIZ023-120600- /O.EXA.KMPX.WW.Y.0015.000000T0000Z-230312T1500Z/ Anoka-Ramsey-Washington-St. Croix- Including the cities of Blaine, St Paul, Stillwater, and Hudson 306 PM CST Sat Mar 11 2023 ...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 AM CDT SUNDAY... * WHAT...Snow. Additional snow accumulations of 2 to 4 inches. * WHERE...In Minnesota, Anoka, Ramsey and Washington Counties. In Wisconsin, St. Croix County. * WHEN...Until 10 AM CDT Sunday. * IMPACTS...Plan on slippery road conditions. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... Slow down and use caution while traveling. The latest road conditions for the state you are calling from can be obtained by calling 5 1 1. Road conditions can also be found at 511mn.org for Minnesota or 511wi.gov for Wisconsin.

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You can find updated weather information for Minnesota and western Wisconsin on the Minnesota Public Radio News network, and on the MPR News live weather blog.

Top ten snowiest

The official Twin Cities snowfall total for the 2022-2023 snow season was 78 inches through March 10. We’ll add a few inches to that season snowfall total this weekend.

Here are the top ten season snowfall totals in Twin Cities weather records:

Anything over 1 inch of snow would push 2022-23 into the eighth snowiest season in Twin Cities weather records.

The average Twin Cities season snowfall total is 51.2 inches. The last really snowy season in the Twin Cities was in 2018-2019, with 77.1 inches:

Temperature trends

The average Twin Cities high temp is 39 degrees on March 11. Metro area highs are forecast to reach the low to mid-30s this Saturday.

Most of Minnesota and western Wisconsin will have Saturday highs in the 30s, with some upper 20s in far northern Minnesota.

Sunday highs will be mainly in the 30s, with 20s in far western and far northern Minnesota:

Twin Cities metro area highs are project to be around 30 degrees on Monday, followed by lower 30s Tuesday and then lower 40s Wednesday and Thursday. Metro area highs retreat to the lower 30s on Friday.

Spring ahead

Daylight saving time returns at 2 a.m. Sunday. If you have any watches or clocks that don’t automatically adjust, you might want to turn them ahead one hour before you go to sleep Saturday night.

Programming note

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