Frigid temperatures this weekend prompt cold weather advisories

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I’m grateful today for the amazing support you give our MPR weather and news teams all year long. I hope you are having a great holiday weekend with your loved ones. As Ted Lasso would say: 

We can all be grateful that travel conditions are good across our region this Thanksgiving Day through Friday afternoon in most of Minnesota.

And speaking of the holiday weekend, the next snow event is on the way to southern Minnesota Friday night through Saturday. This one will be a longer duration snow event that will occur all day Saturday in most areas. 

Let’s breakdown the next system for snowfall timing, coverage, totals, and travel conditions.

Our next wintry storm in late November is a slow moving low pressure system that will track from around Kansas City to Chicago Saturday. That storm track will favor the heaviest snow bands south of the Twin Cities across southern Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, to around Chicago.

The European model shows the likely storm track and snowfall shield evolving through Saturday. The forecast model loop below runs between 6 p.m. Friday and 9 a.m. Sunday.

Notice how the heaviest snowfall bands set up across Iowa and Wisconsin into southern Minnesota. And then see how the Twin Cities rides the lighter snow zone on the northern edge of the system. 

 are up for southern Minnesota south of the Twin Cities.

I’m pretty certain at this point the heaviest snowfall zone Saturday will favor Iowa and southern Minnesota along the I-90 corridor through Wisconsin into northern Illinois. 

The Twin Cities will ride the less snowy northern edge of the system. There are a few models that favor drier air sifting into the storms north edge near the Twin Cities. If that trend wins, we will see less snow in the Twin Cities area, especially in the north.

Given those factors and since we’re still a good 36 hours before snow flies for real in the Twin Cities, the early read for snowfall favors a zone of heavy snow by Sunday between 6 and 12 inches across much of Iowa, southern Wisconsin, and northern Illinois.

The I-90 corridor in Minnesota has the best chance of seeing 6 inches or more of snow by Sunday.

For my eye, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s RRFS model seem to have a good handle on potential snowfall distribution through Sunday. We’re still a day and a half before the snow zone sets up, so things may change (especially for the Twin Cities area) with any shift north or south.

NOAA’s latest available snowfall projection for the region is at the top of this post. I would lean a little lighter for the Twin Cities area. If the dry air wins, we could see more like 1 to 3 inches in the Twin Cities with the best chance for 4 to 5 or more inches just south.

So bottom line, prepare for widespread snow across the Upper Midwest especially south of the Twin Cities Saturday

If you are planning travel to Des Moines, Madison, Milwaukee, or Chicago expect heavy snow Saturday along those routes. The best travel will be through Friday afternoon and again on Sunday. travel will be better all weekend north of the Twin Cities.

Behind the storm, the season’s coldest air so far invades into Monday. Highs will stay in the teens Sunday. And temperatures will bottom near zero in the Twin Cities with subzero temperatures in the north Monday morning!

Have a great holiday weekend and travel safely everyone!

Weather and Climate News

Updraft® - Minnesota Weather News

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Paul Huttner

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A long-duration fluffy snowfall event will drop snow Friday night through Saturday across southern Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin and the Chicago area.

Next snow event Friday night through Saturday from MSP southward

Go Deeper.

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