Prompts winter weather advisories as cold air moves in Friday night

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Welcome to the weather Disneyland we call Minnesota.  

Here you can enjoy a volatile ride featuring balmy 70-degree temperatures, quickly crashing into heavy wind-whipped snow within a few hours.

First we enjoy two docile spring days. Highs Thursday will reach the 60s across southern Minnesota. 

Friday brings our first 70-degree temperature to much of the south.

Meteorologically speaking, our inbound storm is a beautiful comma-shaped beast swirling into  the California coast Wednesday. Textbook.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Global Forecast System model paints the likely storm scenario as it spins across our region Friday into Saturday. 

The forecast model loop below shows thunder cells in southern Minnesota at 6 p.m. Friday and heavy snow across far western Minnesota by 6 a.m. Saturday.

Friday night’s thunder cells will likely be strongest across southern Minnesota near the Iowa border. A marginal risk for severe storms packing high winds and some hail reaches as far north as the Twin Cities Friday evening. 

Then the cold air will change rain to snow across western Minnesota. 

Here’s the latest forecast discussion detail from The Twin Cities National Weather Service office:

Highs Saturday will be in the 40s east to chilly 30s west.

It looks like temperatures will rise back into the 40s and 50s next week.

Weather and Climate News

Updraft® - Minnesota Weather News

Paul Huttner

Author

A potent spring storm is dumping rain and high-elevation snows out west. It brings a feisty mix to Minnesota Friday into the weekend. 

Wild weather weekend ahead: Balmy 70s, thunder, wind-whipped snow, cold

Go Deeper.

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