No problem. I for one didn’t want to jinx this opportunity for a decent chunk of snow. Thanks for the thread. Like last winter, snow has been scarce. I hope PWL is doing the snow dance.
Funny, I thought about adding a threat but figured I'd honor WeatherGeek's request. :-) Looks like ignoring set the fuse on the apparently over-achieving storm. (This is Bill)
That’s okay, Bill, the storm is “threatening” enough as is. ;-) Let’s see… still snowing and blowing, winds up to 50 miles per hour, so far 2” to 10” of snow depending upon where you live and how much the wind is blowing, various areas have fog as well. People are encouraged to stay home, schools are closing, no city buses running at this time, power has gone out in various places, and of course lots of car accidents. I live by the airport and usually hear planes starting to land about 4:00 a.m. Have yet to hear one. Cannot hear any freeway noise either and that’s only a block away. (I love the “no noise” part…) And, totally unrelated, there’s a fire in the Uptown area… Temps In the 40’s and 50’s this weekend, but we will lose an hour of sleep (Daylight Savings). How’s all that for an update? MM ;-)
Hmm…Bill…Bill. I used to know a Bill…and a Willie (as in Mays). Planes are flying overhead again (with some frequency) and the freeway is humming along (with an occasional police siren). Oh, lovely--now the monthly test siren has just gone off. What joy. My peaceful morning is now just a memory… (This is Mary)
MSP/CHAN have 2.7" as of 12:54 a.m. update. It's hard to tell what's out there because like Bigdaddy says, it's going sideways. Bill/Dave, you guys are a hoot. Today's going to be slow going. I look forward to the snow totals and maybe going out and walking in the snow globe.
When a storm shuts down Metro Transit for a decent amount of time and necessitates the National Guard to help stranded motorists, that’s a tournament storm you betcha. Happy dance looking at this white stuff.
Pretty impressive storm. I think it was somewhat of a surprise for many as well, especially those who only listen to the local news stations. Novak was the only one several days ago who was sounding the alarm for a pretty big storm. Heck, during Monday evening's (March 3) newscast Kare 11 and WCCO for example were only calling for 1-2 inches for the metro (1 inch around Maple Grove and 2 inches in the Cottage Grove/Woodbury area). Neither even mentioned the possibility of the storm shifting and bringing the metro a whole lot more snow than that. This is why l listen to Novak! Way to go Novak...once again!!
Now I want to know what Novak has to say about mid-March. The last 6 runs or so of both the GFS and Euro have painted a big snowstorm for central and southern Minnesota for around March 14. Fingers crossed!
I understand you are probably tired after this storm, but quickly rest up and start dancing again, PWL!!
Totally agree with you Schnee, I was sitting in the emergency room waiting area Monday evening after bringing in a friend and they had Fox 9 on, evening news with Ian Leonard and he said most of the action will be south and east of the Twin Cities only 1-3” in the metro after some rain…he was so nonchalant about it not even explaining the possibility of a bigger deal when the winter storm watch was literally butted up to the core metro and some models by Monday evening were already increasing totals and impacts. Even on Tuesday on social media he never updated the initial 1-3”….TV Mets play it too safe and conservative.
Hard to believe this blog has been around for 15 Winters already. I love checking in from Charlotte whenever it looks like a storm is headed your way. I miss being in the middle of them, though.
Am I weird, or does anyone else love the impressive size beauty of these Spring storms on radar and satellite? I'm blown away every time.
Final tally was a solid 8” in west metro(GV/New Hope area). Now we clean up…enjoy it for a few days…watch it melt away slowly each day….put on some shorts by Tuesday and then possibly rinse and repeat all over again later next week(looking at late Thurs-Saturday timeframe)….this is what the NWS has to say about it:
The pattern will remain active to the south with relatively weak systems through early week, but late next week bears close watching. Numerous GEFS and EPS members develop another powerhouse low pressure system over the Plains late next week, often with minimum pressures in the 970s mb. EPS is the most tightly clustered in the days 9-10 timeframe with the majority of the members passing over or just to the south. It`s a long ways out to worry about details yet, but there could be another high impact event on the horizon.
We may have had a slow and paltry snow season thus far but March may make up for it, time will tell.
1. Novak nailed it. And nailed it way ahead of anyone else.
2. Where are the bust talkers? Funny how they come out loud and proud when the prediction is off a bit. I wish they would come out and give credit where credit is due - when Novak nails it (which is often).
3. Not too many times does a peace time emergency get called because of the weather. In addition to transit systems being impacted.
4. Rarely does it snow that hard and that fast with that much wind - especially when it has been quite warm.
5. I am tired from dancing. But not too tired!! I am already starting a slow dance as I prep for another possible storm for late next week.
6. I am reminded again and again how conservative TV weather people are. C'mon. At least talk about the possibility. And I would even argue that they downplay the accurate amounts when it happens IF they have underpredicted it. Ian just did this on TV just now. He showed how much the metro received and the amounts - generally drawn on a map - were way off. That is just not ok.
7. I love the commenters on here. You are like virtual friends that keep coming back for more.
No lie re: #6. I listened to 'CCO radio a bit yesterday as I drove around pre-storm, and one forecaster said '2" for the metro' and I said, WHAT? to the radio. Two inches? That was ridiculous. This was pretty epic as you said above, PWL. And yeah, timeanddate which I know I shouldn't look at puts about 8-10" down the weekend after this one (like Bigdaddy says above), so let's see what happens. Maybe this year March WILL be the snowiest month. Finally: Novak is the GOAT of forecasting and has always been since I found this blog many years ago (as Joel mentioned above).
I was a naysayer. I own it. Not sure why I wasn’t following Novak. Novak did nail it! I believe he was the only one.
I stand by everything I said about this winter. It’s been the second consecutive pathetic winter for snow. Last March gave us a couple decent snowfalls, but we still ended with very disappointing snow totals for the season. This March might be a repeat of last March, especially if we can pull off another big storm or two. Yes, I will be checking in with Novak to see what his thoughts are about that.
I love the people on this site too (Big Daddy, it’s good to see you on here again. I saw familiar posters this season such as PWL, Schnee Meister, Weather Geek, etc, but I don’t recall seeing you). I love winter, especially snow! It feels good to be able to communicate with all of you that share my interest in winter and the weather in general. I look forward to this site starting every October!
I was traveling for work, so I missed this storm...grrr. But I just saw a post by the US NWS on Facebook with a 7-day alert and have our area in likelihood of heavy snow and high winds March 13-14. Anyone else seeing that?
I'm seeing a ton of rain and warm temps. :+( Hoping it changes. If it could cool down, that chunk of rain could be an excellent snowfall. Sorry you missed this storm, Big Snow Fan.
Nothing to see next week around March 14-15, too warm! Mostly all rain, even Novak is on record calling for rain. Too bad to you snowlovers because someone will get buried and it looks like the Dakotas with feets of snow not just inches.
As others have said, hope for a big snowstorm late next week in the metro is being dashed. The GFS and Euro were advertising a big snowstorm late next in run after run. Now run after run they have the storm passing to the west of us. As of now it looks like a big storm for the Dakotas and warm rain for the metro. The way this season has gone we can’t be too surprised about this, just disappointed.
For what it’s worth, regarding next week’s storm, the latest GFS is reflecting a more southern track before heading northeast through central/eastern MN, as opposed to tracking through eastern South Dakota. It will be interesting to see if this becomes a trend, and if so, will it continue? .
Novak just posted 70 degrees is not out of the question next Friday and neither is a low of 50 degrees for next Saturday. So much for our hopes of having another snowstorm next week. This is why I don’t get excited when models show something fun a week or more away.
70° temps forecasted not once but twice this week, yeah snow is done and winter is done, a winter that performed believe it or not worse then last year!
Folks let’s not sleep on the Fri/Sat storm system and all this winter is over talk! Nice it’s a warm week but Saturday looks like it can turn wild around here, like a 40°+ temp drop from the day before to flash freezers and accumulating snow(not sure how much but it will snow, many models bringing decent snows nearby)so watch Saturday for sure and then the following week will be cooler with snow potentials….i think obviously March has already been a roller coaster in terms of temps and precipitation and it will continue the rest of the mont, snow is not done with us, mark my words!
Thanks for the update, Bigdaddy. If we get close to an inch of rain.... oh that it could be snow. Flash freezing I do not wish upon anyone; I already have a friend who slipped after last Wednesday's big storm and she broke her leg in three places. But yeah, our rollercoaster of temp/precip swings continues and like you say, 'snow is not done with us, mark my words!' Let's see how the weekend plays out.
A summation of 'winter thus far' from Mr. Douglas in the Strib: "Every winter is different, peculiar in its own special way. Meteorological winter (Dec. 1 through Feb. 28) was the 18th least snowiest at MSP. Only 15 inches had fallen as of March 1. Last Wednesday’s snow blitz brought the metro area’s snow total up to 25.6 inches. We should have picked up more than 43” by now.
Winter was .4 degrees colder than average at MSP, tied for the 44th warmest since 1871. We had 27 subzero nights. The 30-year average is 22 nights below zero. Based on NWS Heating Degree data, since late summer we’ve actually spent 9% less on heating bills than average. Yes, last fall was balmy. And dry."
You guys are the best. I appreciate the kind comments.
One of the biggest issues we have in the weather industry is with all the cooks in the kitchen, including me. There are so many outlets/people who throw out forecasts to the public & many of these individuals simply don't do enough homework ahead of time to justify their forecasts. This leads to a ton of miscommunication between the industry & the public. I can't tell you how many times I've heard "well they said that" or "You said that...." when I didn't. Quite frankly, I trust many more social media weather outlets and/or arm chair QB forecasters than I do the front facing TV, Radio & Newspaper outlets.
BTW, the storm for next Wednesday really looks impressive even 6 days out. I'm pretty confident that someone in southern MN will be digging out from 6.0"+ of snow.
How great to see Mr. Novak over here saying hello. And yes, wow, Wednesday looks like there is a chance we get a reasonable chunk of snow. That would be so beautiful!!! I follow you religiously over on FB, Novak. G.O.A.T. Thanks for visiting.
Yeah I’ll take the bullet for Saturday, definitely looks like a swing and a miss….it will turn colder and maybe snow in the air but I don’t see anything more then a dusting now whereas before models were bringing something more plowable close to the metro. But like I said in my earlier post next week has potential and that we weren’t done with the snow, well Wednesday come be a high impact day, just looking at a few models as of the 00z overnight models the Canadian and GFS has 1-2ft of snows for us and the Euro has something similar but mostly Wisconsin, so yeah the potential is there. Thank you for your input Novak, love it when you chime in here and also love your posts on X as well, come back in a few days and give us your thoughts on Wednesday, hopefully it will pack a punch for us metro snow lovers.
One of my favorite sites that always changes its mind just put out 16" of snow over the metro this coming Wednesday. Can you IMAGINE it? Let's see what we really get.
Great to see you stop by, Novak! As the others have said, you are Da Man! When I want accurate, in-depth forecasts you are my go to guy. Keep up the good work…and please try to bring the metro a nice snowstorm next Wednesday!
Hey snowlovers he said somewhere in southern Minnesota, guess what it all pushed away today. Areas of Iowa, southeast MN and Wisconsin are now in line for the Wed nonevent, far from the metro. Winter on life support? Enjoy those 70’s today!
“Guidance is trying to shove Wednesday's system just south of MN. However, upper-air guidance still favors a significant snow over southern MN. This is going to be interesting. Don't trust any forecast right now.“
I for one am not placing any bets…just going to remain hopeful.
I’m going with winter is over. It’s too late to get any snow to stay around anyway. Looking ahead through the end of the month temps are forecasted mostly to be in the 40’s and 50’s. Here’s hoping next season doesn’t disappoint again.
Couple of items for food for thought here for the metro snow lovers, when the term southern Minnesota is thrown around you do know that DOESNT include the Twin Cities right? So just like with many snowstorms recently this one is trending for a dumping in SOUTHERN Minnesota so places like Mankato/Albert Lea/Rochester will be in snow heaven and places north of there will see the edges of perhaps a cosmetic snowfall, also this time of year sun angle is high so any daytime snow will melt a lot so metro area will see wet roads as well. So when you hear Novak or others say southern Minnesota like where this one is trending don’t be disappointed come Wednesday!
I consider southern MN to be from the Twin Cities on south. Central MN would be St. Cloud, Alex, Brainerd etc.
As far as Wednesday's storm is concerned, all guidances have continually shown an impressive upper-air structure over southern MN & much of WI. So, it should be no surprise if/when the heavy snow band creeps north on future guidance runs. There is no doubt that there will be sharp snow gradients on the northern & southern edges of the snow band. This has the looks of a 6"-10"+ snow band that would be about 50 to 100 miles wide. My bet is that the northern gradient sets-up somewhere in the metro.
Thanks everyone for the comments/analyses; it's great to see Novak Weather over here to give us his thoughts, too! Much appreciated, Mr. Novak. Of course it won't stick around forever, but whatever falls is also much appreciated. :+) Dance PLW ... "Let's Go!"
Not only does my 'laughable at times' timeanddate model print out a GREAT chunk of snow this Wednesday, it's spitting out a big pile the 28th, too. I don't do PWL dances, but here's hoping........
More models then not are bringing the heavier snows into MSP….particularly the 06z GFS and NAM models….6-10+…..but some models most notably the EURO keep us under 2”. As always this will AGAIN be a sharp gradient snowfall, if the northern trends continue expect the winter storm watch to expand and include MSP during this afternoon’s NWS update. Side note: GFS is on steroids for the remainder of the month it brings in 3-4 snowstorms dropping in excess of 3-4ft, yes feet! Obviously an outliner that most likely won’t happen but what IF……one can dream right?
Same, thanks for the info, Big Daddy! Can you imagine? Novak just noted the 12z runs keep showing snow for MSP. Anyone care to post what models are showing what totals? Bring it!
Yes but not the metro, because the brunt of it will miss the Twin Cities regardless of what you call southern Minnesota, this will be a Albert Lea Mankato Rochester Red Wing special and like most cases people living in the actual metro(the loop) will be disappointed again. Bring on Spring!
Well, I consider Lakeville and Eagan/Apple Valley, Shakopee to be 'metro' and they are in the watch..... let's see what tomorrow brings. I guess we define 'Twin Cities' differently. I'm not just calling it 'MSP'..... we've got a lot of suburbs. But yes, the brunt appears much more 'south' of the 'core' if that is how you define 'the Twin Cities.' Potato, potahto....Enjoy the evening and tomorrow. I love snow, so even a couple of inches is better than zip.
It’s pretty wild to me that here we are 24hrs from the onset of a snowstorm hitting our general vicinity and there are so many model variations and forecasts we have the one model that continues to spit out over a foot of snow at MSP, the GFS model while we have others that are middle of the road of 4-5”, the HRRR model while others have virtually 0, the Canadian model….everyone likes to jump on the EURO model which is updating now so we’ll see what it says shortly…but regardless the reality is the going forecast for MSP 24hrs before the storm hits is 0-12”….meteorologists have a tough job!!
Thanks for the model update, Bigdaddy, and 'the spread.' Interesting on how there is no consensus. Ufduh! It's fascinating, too that even Mr. Novak doesn't have a spread for inches, yet. Guess we will all just have to be surprised. Thanks again.
This is so interesting. The virtually the only model holding onto the twin cities being in the bullseye is the GFS. Even the 06z run holds on to this. The Euro has accumulations almost missing the twin cities. This is very interesting as the NWS is holding onto 3-5 inches for Plymouth which is in the west metro of course. I love watching these things play out!
This is another MSP/TWIN CITIES/MINNEAPOLIS/CORE/METRO bust, name it what you will, but every model except one shows MSP getting virtually nothing. Nothing to see here, stop holding out hope and just get your homes and yards ready for spring, this winter has been a bust and move on! Another red flag to your snowlovers Novak not updating anywhere with his prediction because this storm is lacking any punch for anyone in the metro but he will be happy down in Rochester, even the NWS is way off with their headlines, the advisory needs to be dropped the watch needs to be dropped the blizzard warning scaled back.
Thanks for all the updates, folks. I wonder why NOAA is still saying 3-5" where I live. They should dial it down based on all your observations. Thanks again everyone.
As I expected, headlines trimmed way back, advisory gone for metro, watch downgraded, blizzard warnings scaled back. Too many people jumped on the NAM and GFS models, EURO performed well on this for the last 3 days. Spring forward people!
This is another lesson for us snow fans to give little credence to models more than a day or so away from the start of the event. So often storm tracks change at the last minute. It’s cold, cloudy and windy here in the northwest loop this morning. It looks like a snowstorm is coming. It feels like a snowstorm is coming…but alas, NO snowstorm is coming. Maybe the snowstorms will come back with regularity next season?? One can only hope.
With NOAA cutbacks including weather balloons that take measurements for forecasts, who knows what the next season's 'accuracy' will be like. It seems harder than ever before to me. But yes, I echo what you say, Tony. "What a season."
Agreed. Like I once said, looking back on all the entries through the years on this blog brings back memories of 'real winters.' Two sad ones in a row, now...... and feeling pessimistic about the future with NOAA 'weathering' cuts in their staff and services coupled with climate change. Many thanks as always for Bill/Dave maintaining this blog for we who love winter and snow.... and until next year...... stay safe everyone/sky aware.
Just read this unfortunate news about what cuts are impacting. https://apnews.com/article/weather-forecasts-worsen-doge-trump-cuts-tornado-da573a044916c06cebcdb92b1f1452e6
Alright everyone - I think we all know better than to say stick a fork in it. While this winter will be an under average winder for snowfall, it is only March 22 and we know that we can get snow up through April. Yes, it will melt quickly, sun angle, and all the things, but I can only say that data would show that the total we have as of today (March 22) will NOT be the total we have at the end of the snow season. Just hang in there.
The Euro shows something very interesting the last weekend in March.
Poof! It’s been gone and so is winter, know when to throw in the towel ,wave the white flag and look forward to next year and hope you get something decent in the snowfall department because the last two years ain’t it.
I too think winter or at least snowfall isn’t done with us yet, possibly yet several chances out there!! Yes this weekend notably Saturday late/ Sunday could be a wintry swipe, but I’m looking for better chances around midweek next week like the 1st/2nd after the colder air(well cold enough for snow) is established from this weekend. Don’t give up hope just yet!
You all make me smile. Let’s cheer for Old Man Winter trying to bring us some more beautiful ‘white gold’ because we need it and want it. And as for ‘poof’ I don’t give a poof ha ha. Let it SNOW!!
Cooler and drier air will follow early next week with largely tranquil weather expected until the next system to watch develops in the central U.S. midweek. This system could be yet another event with rain, snow, and everything in-between. One things for sure - it would have been nice to see this weather pattern in January.
Can’t put too much stock into it, especially at this range and it’s poor performance of the last potential storm but the GFS has significant snowfall >6” last couple of model runs for late Saturday.Other models not so much….
Thanks for the updates. I keep wondering if the NOAA cuts to things like weather balloons are throwing off computer models. It seems like there are so many chances of snow, and then it doesn't pan out. Maybe it's just my mind playing tricks. And you are right, Bigdaddy, 'it would have been nice to see this weather pattern in January.'
WeatherGeek, I agree with you. I have been wondering the same thing. It’s gotten so bad that I no longer give more than a glance at models more than 48 hours from the start of the event. They consistently have shown snow, and often times decent amounts of snow of several inches, for the metro only to completely pull the snow out of the forecast or minimize it to less than an inch by the time the event finally arrives. I point out that I have also noticed this with the EURO model, which should not be subject to any cuts made here in the U.S.
Sticking with the inaccuracy theme, the following inaccurate predictions/forecasts for the southern half of Minnesota have been on my mind recently:
1. ABOVE average snowfall for 2024-2025 winter (What a JOKE!!! MAJOR FAIL!!!)
2. Spring will arrive late in 2025 (March temps are running more than 6 degrees ABOVE average as of today March 27!)
3. Strat Warming event will cause below to well below normal temps from mid-March to mid-April. (Really???? Where?)
I could continue to rant and voice my frustrations at another extremely disappointing winter, but I won’t. Yes, ice fisher people I see you. I am glad you had good ice this season. As for snow, fuhgeddaboudit!!
Thanks Tony and Schnee Meister…… I am watching the chances of precipitation seeming to vaporize from the forecasts even for tonight and tomorrow. Holey Moley. This morning I got excited as a NOAA weather spotter that I might get to see something tomorrow per NOAA, but that’s all gone now, too. Not that I wish severe anything on us. I guess I’ll just see what we get and hope that it’s something because we need the moisture. Thanks again, snow lovers.
Jon: You betcha! Timeanddate has been putting out crazy totals like that this entire 'winter.' They are echoing 7-8" this weekend. We all know how that will end up. Bummer. I again ask: why is this happening so much more often? Have a good weekend. Let's see what we get.
Talk about a temperature contrast, my friends/family in Grand Marais and Door County are forecasted to remain in the 20’s and 30’s through most of next week. Meanwhile here in the TC we have been in the 50’s and 60’s and are looking at mid-70’s today!
I know most people are focused on the near term with whatever potential we still have for overnight Saturday, I’m thinking in the 1-3” range but I’m squarely focused on late Tuesday/Wednesday, I think that’s our last “big” dump potential(8+), in fact the latest EURO model is showing 11” for the metro which for being 4 days out is interesting to say the least….so stay tuned!
Almost two inches of rain and then some in most metro reporting this morning. Paul D says this is one of the 12th warmest Marches since record-keeping in 1895. So sad for we who love snow. And as for Wednesday and the predictions of snow? "I will believe it when I see it", sadly.
Officially 1.7 inches of snow fell yesterday at MSP. That brings our paltry season total to 27.5 inches. Last season’s pathetic excuse for a winter recorded 31.8 inches, with 15.2 inches falling in March. There’s a winter storm watch out for tomorrow for 6+ inches of snow just north of the metro on up through Brainerd/Duluth area. It looks like those of us in the metro will probably see a mix that will turn to another cold rain. Looking ahead, I’m not confident this season’s snow total will even reach last season’s pitiful total. Just think, everyone (NWS, local Mets, Novak, etc.) predicted a snowier winter than average for us this season! They couldn’t have been more wrong!!
Yeah sucks, a few days ago Tuesday was looking pretty solid for us but as is the case most times we ride a fine line here in the metro, I still think it snows tomorrow, I’m always of the mindset that if a snowstorm is close or snow is forecasted things sometimes can overachieve, now it looks like we’re missing the big snows again but I’m hoping it snows 4.3” tomorrow for shits and giggles and we end with two identical paltry 31.8” consecutive snow seasons….now I know the whole month of April we need to get thru but this seems like the best last chance as the pattern definitely quiets down after this next storm.
Looking at NOAA this morning: 29.4 inches of snow for the season (so still below that sad 31.8 Bigdaddy mentions above); we are doing okay precipitation-wise with all the winter RAIN we get, but we are 18.5 inches below our 'average' snowfall for a season. And don't we miss it, OH YEAH. Chan has 29.9 for the season but 19.7 inches below their average snowfall. It's more or less a wrap, don't you all think? I will enjoy the beautiful white snow globe out there this morning before it disappears.
MSP officially checked in with 2.1 inches from last night’s “surprise” snow (closer to 3 inches here in the Maple Grove/Plymouth area). I say “surprise” because the local Mets and NWS were calling for a mix with no accumulation. Novak, however, said we could get 2-3 inches…and he was right again! That officially brings us to 29.6 inches for the season. Another lame snow season for sure. It doesn’t appear any more is in the offing for this season. Believe it or not this is worse than last year’s anemic final total of 31.8 inches!! WeatherGeek, I agree this was likely our last hurrah until next fall. I took some beautiful pictures last night and this morning of the snow clinging to every tree branch, fence post, etc. It looked like a winter wonderland! A sight that has been too infrequent the past couple of years. Barring anything extraordinary, I am signing off. I hope everyone has a good year. I look forward to seeing you all again in October, which I pray will be the start of a wonderful winter season! Please, no 3-peat!!
Today’s National Weather Service forecast for my area, Crystal, is rain and 41 degrees. It hasn’t been any warmer than 35 so far. We had some rain mid-morning, but now it’s turned to big fat wet snowflakes!
No problem. I for one didn’t want to jinx this opportunity for a decent chunk of snow. Thanks for the thread. Like last winter, snow has been scarce. I hope PWL is doing the snow dance.
ReplyDeleteYou bet, WeatherGeek!! I am dancing like a maniac. Doing the maniac dance! It's working!
ReplyDeleteBring it!!
Funny, I thought about adding a threat but figured I'd honor WeatherGeek's request. :-) Looks like ignoring set the fuse on the apparently over-achieving storm. (This is Bill)
ReplyDeleteThat’s okay, Bill, the storm is “threatening” enough as is. ;-) Let’s see… still snowing and blowing, winds up to 50 miles per hour, so far 2” to 10” of snow depending upon where you live and how much the wind is blowing, various areas have fog as well. People are encouraged to stay home, schools are closing, no city buses running at this time, power has gone out in various places, and of course lots of car accidents. I live by the airport and usually hear planes starting to land about 4:00 a.m. Have yet to hear one. Cannot hear any freeway noise either and that’s only a block away. (I love the “no noise” part…) And, totally unrelated, there’s a fire in the Uptown area… Temps In the 40’s and 50’s this weekend, but we will lose an hour of sleep (Daylight Savings). How’s all that for an update? MM ;-)
DeleteI love it! Thanks, MM. (This is Bill)
DeleteHmm…Bill…Bill. I used to know a Bill…and a Willie (as in Mays). Planes are flying overhead again (with some frequency) and the freeway is humming along (with an occasional police siren). Oh, lovely--now the monthly test siren has just gone off. What joy. My peaceful morning is now just a memory… (This is Mary)
DeleteSnowing hard and sideways. 5” currently(but hard to measure) west metro GV.
ReplyDeleteMSP/CHAN have 2.7" as of 12:54 a.m. update. It's hard to tell what's out there because like Bigdaddy says, it's going sideways. Bill/Dave, you guys are a hoot. Today's going to be slow going. I look forward to the snow totals and maybe going out and walking in the snow globe.
ReplyDeleteWhen a storm shuts down Metro Transit for a decent amount of time and necessitates the National Guard to help stranded motorists, that’s a tournament storm you betcha. Happy dance looking at this white stuff.
ReplyDeletePretty impressive storm. I think it was somewhat of a surprise for many as well, especially those who only listen to the local news stations. Novak was the only one several days ago who was sounding the alarm for a pretty big storm. Heck, during Monday evening's (March 3) newscast Kare 11 and WCCO for example were only calling for 1-2 inches for the metro (1 inch around Maple Grove and 2 inches in the Cottage Grove/Woodbury area). Neither even mentioned the possibility of the storm shifting and bringing the metro a whole lot more snow than that. This is why l listen to Novak! Way to go Novak...once again!!
ReplyDeleteNow I want to know what Novak has to say about mid-March. The last 6 runs or so of both the GFS and Euro have painted a big snowstorm for central and southern Minnesota for around March 14. Fingers crossed!
I understand you are probably tired after this storm, but quickly rest up and start dancing again, PWL!!
Totally agree with you Schnee, I was sitting in the emergency room waiting area Monday evening after bringing in a friend and they had Fox 9 on, evening news with Ian Leonard and he said most of the action will be south and east of the Twin Cities only 1-3” in the metro after some rain…he was so nonchalant about it not even explaining the possibility of a bigger deal when the winter storm watch was literally butted up to the core metro and some models by Monday evening were already increasing totals and impacts. Even on Tuesday on social media he never updated the initial 1-3”….TV Mets play it too safe and conservative.
DeleteHard to believe this blog has been around for 15 Winters already. I love checking in from Charlotte whenever it looks like a storm is headed your way. I miss being in the middle of them, though.
ReplyDeleteAm I weird, or does anyone else love the impressive size beauty of these Spring storms on radar and satellite? I'm blown away every time.
Final tally was a solid 8” in west metro(GV/New Hope area). Now we clean up…enjoy it for a few days…watch it melt away slowly each day….put on some shorts by Tuesday and then possibly rinse and repeat all over again later next week(looking at late Thurs-Saturday timeframe)….this is what the NWS has to say about it:
ReplyDeleteThe pattern will remain active to the south with relatively weak
systems through early week, but late next week bears close
watching. Numerous GEFS and EPS members develop another
powerhouse low pressure system over the Plains late next week,
often with minimum pressures in the 970s mb. EPS is the most
tightly clustered in the days 9-10 timeframe with the majority
of the members passing over or just to the south. It`s a long
ways out to worry about details yet, but there could be another
high impact event on the horizon.
We may have had a slow and paltry snow season thus far but March may make up for it, time will tell.
Several takeaways from this storm:
ReplyDelete1. Novak nailed it. And nailed it way ahead of anyone else.
2. Where are the bust talkers? Funny how they come out loud and proud when the prediction is off a bit. I wish they would come out and give credit where credit is due - when Novak nails it (which is often).
3. Not too many times does a peace time emergency get called because of the weather. In addition to transit systems being impacted.
4. Rarely does it snow that hard and that fast with that much wind - especially when it has been quite warm.
5. I am tired from dancing. But not too tired!! I am already starting a slow dance as I prep for another possible storm for late next week.
6. I am reminded again and again how conservative TV weather people are. C'mon. At least talk about the possibility. And I would even argue that they downplay the accurate amounts when it happens IF they have underpredicted it. Ian just did this on TV just now. He showed how much the metro received and the amounts - generally drawn on a map - were way off. That is just not ok.
7. I love the commenters on here. You are like virtual friends that keep coming back for more.
8. Bring it!!!!!
No lie re: #6. I listened to 'CCO radio a bit yesterday as I drove around pre-storm, and one forecaster said '2" for the metro' and I said, WHAT? to the radio. Two inches? That was ridiculous. This was pretty epic as you said above, PWL. And yeah, timeanddate which I know I shouldn't look at puts about 8-10" down the weekend after this one (like Bigdaddy says above), so let's see what happens. Maybe this year March WILL be the snowiest month. Finally: Novak is the GOAT of forecasting and has always been since I found this blog many years ago (as Joel mentioned above).
DeleteI was a naysayer. I own it. Not sure why I wasn’t following Novak. Novak did nail it! I believe he was the only one.
DeleteI stand by everything I said about this winter. It’s been the second consecutive pathetic winter for snow. Last March gave us a couple decent snowfalls, but we still ended with very disappointing snow totals for the season. This March might be a repeat of last March, especially if we can pull off another big storm or two. Yes, I will be checking in with Novak to see what his thoughts are about that.
I love the people on this site too (Big Daddy, it’s good to see you on here again. I saw familiar posters this season such as PWL, Schnee Meister, Weather Geek, etc, but I don’t recall seeing you). I love winter, especially snow! It feels good to be able to communicate with all of you that share my interest in winter and the weather in general. I look forward to this site starting every October!
Officially 9.5 at MSP. Very decent. 7.4 at Chan. Woot woot!!
DeleteI was traveling for work, so I missed this storm...grrr. But I just saw a post by the US NWS on Facebook with a 7-day alert and have our area in likelihood of heavy snow and high winds March 13-14. Anyone else seeing that?
ReplyDeleteI'm seeing a ton of rain and warm temps. :+( Hoping it changes. If it could cool down, that chunk of rain could be an excellent snowfall. Sorry you missed this storm, Big Snow Fan.
DeleteNothing to see next week around March 14-15, too warm! Mostly all rain, even Novak is on record calling for rain. Too bad to you snowlovers because someone will get buried and it looks like the Dakotas with feets of snow not just inches.
ReplyDeleteAs others have said, hope for a big snowstorm late next week in the metro is being dashed. The GFS and Euro were advertising a big snowstorm late next in run after run. Now run after run they have the storm passing to the west of us. As of now it looks like a big storm for the Dakotas and warm rain for the metro. The way this season has gone we can’t be too surprised about this, just disappointed.
ReplyDeleteFor what it’s worth, regarding next week’s storm, the latest GFS is reflecting a more southern track before heading northeast through central/eastern MN, as opposed to tracking through eastern South Dakota. It will be interesting to see if this becomes a trend, and if so, will it continue? .
ReplyDeleteNovak just posted 70 degrees is not out of the question next Friday and neither is a low of 50 degrees for next Saturday. So much for our hopes of having another snowstorm next week. This is why I don’t get excited when models show something fun a week or more away.
ReplyDelete70° temps forecasted not once but twice this week, yeah snow is done and winter is done, a winter that performed believe it or not worse then last year!
ReplyDeleteFolks let’s not sleep on the Fri/Sat storm system and all this winter is over talk! Nice it’s a warm week but Saturday looks like it can turn wild around here, like a 40°+ temp drop from the day before to flash freezers and accumulating snow(not sure how much but it will snow, many models bringing decent snows nearby)so watch Saturday for sure and then the following week will be cooler with snow potentials….i think obviously March has already been a roller coaster in terms of temps and precipitation and it will continue the rest of the mont, snow is not done with us, mark my words!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the update, Bigdaddy. If we get close to an inch of rain.... oh that it could be snow. Flash freezing I do not wish upon anyone; I already have a friend who slipped after last Wednesday's big storm and she broke her leg in three places. But yeah, our rollercoaster of temp/precip swings continues and like you say, 'snow is not done with us, mark my words!' Let's see how the weekend plays out.
DeleteA summation of 'winter thus far' from Mr. Douglas in the Strib: "Every winter is different, peculiar in its own special way. Meteorological winter (Dec. 1 through Feb. 28) was the 18th least snowiest at MSP. Only 15 inches had fallen as of March 1. Last Wednesday’s snow blitz brought the metro area’s snow total up to 25.6 inches. We should have picked up more than 43” by now.
ReplyDeleteWinter was .4 degrees colder than average at MSP, tied for the 44th warmest since 1871. We had 27 subzero nights. The 30-year average is 22 nights below zero. Based on NWS Heating Degree data, since late summer we’ve actually spent 9% less on heating bills than average. Yes, last fall was balmy. And dry."
You guys are the best. I appreciate the kind comments.
ReplyDeleteOne of the biggest issues we have in the weather industry is with all the cooks in the kitchen, including me. There are so many outlets/people who throw out forecasts to the public & many of these individuals simply don't do enough homework ahead of time to justify their forecasts. This leads to a ton of miscommunication between the industry & the public. I can't tell you how many times I've heard "well they said that" or "You said that...." when I didn't. Quite frankly, I trust many more social media weather outlets and/or arm chair QB forecasters than I do the front facing TV, Radio & Newspaper outlets.
BTW, the storm for next Wednesday really looks impressive even 6 days out. I'm pretty confident that someone in southern MN will be digging out from 6.0"+ of snow.
How great to see Mr. Novak over here saying hello. And yes, wow, Wednesday looks like there is a chance we get a reasonable chunk of snow. That would be so beautiful!!! I follow you religiously over on FB, Novak. G.O.A.T. Thanks for visiting.
DeleteNovak made an appearance! Love it. Love him. Love it. Love him. Love it. Love him. I think I made my feelings clear!!
ReplyDeleteThanks for chiming in, Novak. You. Da. Man.
And bring it next week!!!
Yeah I’ll take the bullet for Saturday, definitely looks like a swing and a miss….it will turn colder and maybe snow in the air but I don’t see anything more then a dusting now whereas before models were bringing something more plowable close to the metro. But like I said in my earlier post next week has potential and that we weren’t done with the snow, well Wednesday come be a high impact day, just looking at a few models as of the 00z overnight models the Canadian and GFS has 1-2ft of snows for us and the Euro has something similar but mostly Wisconsin, so yeah the potential is there.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your input Novak, love it when you chime in here and also love your posts on X as well, come back in a few days and give us your thoughts on Wednesday, hopefully it will pack a punch for us metro snow lovers.
One of my favorite sites that always changes its mind just put out 16" of snow over the metro this coming Wednesday. Can you IMAGINE it? Let's see what we really get.
ReplyDeleteGreat to see you stop by, Novak! As the others have said, you are Da Man! When I want accurate, in-depth forecasts you are my go to guy. Keep up the good work…and please try to bring the metro a nice snowstorm next Wednesday!
ReplyDeleteHey snowlovers he said somewhere in southern Minnesota, guess what it all pushed away today. Areas of Iowa, southeast MN and Wisconsin are now in line for the Wed nonevent, far from the metro. Winter on life support? Enjoy those 70’s today!
ReplyDeleteSouthern MN can migrate north a bit; it's still far enough out there that one can have hope. :+) But true, Novak did say that above.
DeleteNovak just posted this:
ReplyDelete“Guidance is trying to shove Wednesday's system just south of MN. However, upper-air guidance still favors a significant snow over southern MN. This is going to be interesting. Don't trust any forecast right now.“
I for one am not placing any bets…just going to remain hopeful.
I’m going with winter is over. It’s too late to get any snow to stay around anyway. Looking ahead through the end of the month temps are forecasted mostly to be in the 40’s and 50’s. Here’s hoping next season doesn’t disappoint again.
ReplyDeleteTwo disappointing winters in a row both less then 30”
ReplyDeleteWinter is not over, my friends - including my “anonymous” friends.
ReplyDeleteBring it!!
Couple of items for food for thought here for the metro snow lovers, when the term southern Minnesota is thrown around you do know that DOESNT include the Twin Cities right? So just like with many snowstorms recently this one is trending for a dumping in SOUTHERN Minnesota so places like Mankato/Albert Lea/Rochester will be in snow heaven and places north of there will see the edges of perhaps a cosmetic snowfall, also this time of year sun angle is high so any daytime snow will melt a lot so metro area will see wet roads as well. So when you hear Novak or others say southern Minnesota like where this one is trending don’t be disappointed come Wednesday!
ReplyDeleteI consider southern MN to be from the Twin Cities on south. Central MN would be St. Cloud, Alex, Brainerd etc.
ReplyDeleteAs far as Wednesday's storm is concerned, all guidances have continually shown an impressive upper-air structure over southern MN & much of WI. So, it should be no surprise if/when the heavy snow band creeps north on future guidance runs. There is no doubt that there will be sharp snow gradients on the northern & southern edges of the snow band. This has the looks of a 6"-10"+ snow band that would be about 50 to 100 miles wide. My bet is that the northern gradient sets-up somewhere in the metro.
Thanks everyone for the comments/analyses; it's great to see Novak Weather over here to give us his thoughts, too! Much appreciated, Mr. Novak. Of course it won't stick around forever, but whatever falls is also much appreciated. :+) Dance PLW ... "Let's Go!"
ReplyDeleteLOVE the Novak is commenting. Bring that!!
ReplyDeleteAlso, interesting how one person can tell others what another person means by “southern” MN. Don’t bring that!
Not only does my 'laughable at times' timeanddate model print out a GREAT chunk of snow this Wednesday, it's spitting out a big pile the 28th, too. I don't do PWL dances, but here's hoping........
ReplyDeleteMore models then not are bringing the heavier snows into MSP….particularly the 06z GFS and NAM models….6-10+…..but some models most notably the EURO keep us under 2”. As always this will AGAIN be a sharp gradient snowfall, if the northern trends continue expect the winter storm watch to expand and include MSP during this afternoon’s NWS update. Side note: GFS is on steroids for the remainder of the month it brings in 3-4 snowstorms dropping in excess of 3-4ft, yes feet! Obviously an outliner that most likely won’t happen but what IF……one can dream right?
ReplyDeleteAw, I'm smiling at your post. Thanks for the update, Bigdaddy.
DeleteSame, thanks for the info, Big Daddy! Can you imagine? Novak just noted the 12z runs keep showing snow for MSP. Anyone care to post what models are showing what totals? Bring it!
ReplyDeleteWashington, Scott, and Dakota County (among others) are now in a Winter Storm Watch..........
ReplyDeleteYes but not the metro, because the brunt of it will miss the Twin Cities regardless of what you call southern Minnesota, this will be a Albert Lea Mankato Rochester Red Wing special and like most cases people living in the actual metro(the loop) will be disappointed again. Bring on Spring!
DeleteWell, I consider Lakeville and Eagan/Apple Valley, Shakopee to be 'metro' and they are in the watch..... let's see what tomorrow brings. I guess we define 'Twin Cities' differently. I'm not just calling it 'MSP'..... we've got a lot of suburbs. But yes, the brunt appears much more 'south' of the 'core' if that is how you define 'the Twin Cities.' Potato, potahto....Enjoy the evening and tomorrow. I love snow, so even a couple of inches is better than zip.
DeleteIt’s pretty wild to me that here we are 24hrs from the onset of a snowstorm hitting our general vicinity and there are so many model variations and forecasts we have the one model that continues to spit out over a foot of snow at MSP, the GFS model while we have others that are middle of the road of 4-5”, the HRRR model while others have virtually 0, the Canadian model….everyone likes to jump on the EURO model which is updating now so we’ll see what it says shortly…but regardless the reality is the going forecast for MSP 24hrs before the storm hits is 0-12”….meteorologists have a tough job!!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the model update, Bigdaddy, and 'the spread.' Interesting on how there is no consensus. Ufduh! It's fascinating, too that even Mr. Novak doesn't have a spread for inches, yet. Guess we will all just have to be surprised. Thanks again.
DeleteWe got our WWA for the ‘metro’ …NOAA posted it early this morning.
ReplyDeleteThis is so interesting. The virtually the only model holding onto the twin cities being in the bullseye is the GFS. Even the 06z run holds on to this. The Euro has accumulations almost missing the twin cities. This is very interesting as the NWS is holding onto 3-5 inches for Plymouth which is in the west metro of course. I love watching these things play out!
ReplyDeleteThis is another MSP/TWIN CITIES/MINNEAPOLIS/CORE/METRO bust, name it what you will, but every model except one shows MSP getting virtually nothing. Nothing to see here, stop holding out hope and just get your homes and yards ready for spring, this winter has been a bust and move on! Another red flag to your snowlovers Novak not updating anywhere with his prediction because this storm is lacking any punch for anyone in the metro but he will be happy down in Rochester, even the NWS is way off with their headlines, the advisory needs to be dropped the watch needs to be dropped the blizzard warning scaled back.
ReplyDeleteI agree with a lot of what you say most definitely. I’m sure jealous of Rochester.
DeleteYah, I just read Novak's latest post - ugh.
ReplyDeleteThanks for all the updates, folks. I wonder why NOAA is still saying 3-5" where I live. They should dial it down based on all your observations. Thanks again everyone.
ReplyDeleteNovak just posted this a minute ago:
ReplyDelete“I'm close to dropping snow totals more, even in the Rochester area. This storm smells & I'm not liking the trends.”
As I expected, headlines trimmed way back, advisory gone for metro, watch downgraded, blizzard warnings scaled back. Too many people jumped on the NAM and GFS models, EURO performed well on this for the last 3 days. Spring forward people!
ReplyDeleteThis is another lesson for us snow fans to give little credence to models more than a day or so away from the start of the event. So often storm tracks change at the last minute. It’s cold, cloudy and windy here in the northwest loop this morning. It looks like a snowstorm is coming. It feels like a snowstorm is coming…but alas, NO snowstorm is coming. Maybe the snowstorms will come back with regularity next season?? One can only hope.
ReplyDeleteWith NOAA cutbacks including weather balloons that take measurements for forecasts, who knows what the next season's 'accuracy' will be like. It seems harder than ever before to me. But yes, I echo what you say, Tony. "What a season."
DeleteI believe it’s done! Stick a fork in her, winter seems to be done! Another pathetic showing at only 26” this year!
ReplyDeleteAgreed. Like I once said, looking back on all the entries through the years on this blog brings back memories of 'real winters.' Two sad ones in a row, now...... and feeling pessimistic about the future with NOAA 'weathering' cuts in their staff and services coupled with climate change. Many thanks as always for Bill/Dave maintaining this blog for we who love winter and snow.... and until next year...... stay safe everyone/sky aware.
DeleteJust read this unfortunate news about what cuts are impacting.
Deletehttps://apnews.com/article/weather-forecasts-worsen-doge-trump-cuts-tornado-da573a044916c06cebcdb92b1f1452e6
Alright everyone - I think we all know better than to say stick a fork in it. While this winter will be an under average winder for snowfall, it is only March 22 and we know that we can get snow up through April. Yes, it will melt quickly, sun angle, and all the things, but I can only say that data would show that the total we have as of today (March 22) will NOT be the total we have at the end of the snow season. Just hang in there.
ReplyDeleteThe Euro shows something very interesting the last weekend in March.
Bring it!
It DID show something interesting and now it doesn’t! Poof
DeleteThat's it!! I'm doing the Not-Poof Dance. It starts TODAY!
ReplyDeleteBring it!!!
12z Euro - Poof, it's back!!!
ReplyDeleteBring it!!
Poof! It’s been gone and so is winter, know when to throw in the towel ,wave the white flag and look forward to next year and hope you get something decent in the snowfall department because the last two years ain’t it.
DeleteI too think winter or at least snowfall isn’t done with us yet, possibly yet several chances out there!! Yes this weekend notably Saturday late/ Sunday could be a wintry swipe, but I’m looking for better chances around midweek next week like the 1st/2nd after the colder air(well cold enough for snow) is established from this weekend. Don’t give up hope just yet!
ReplyDeleteLet’s roll! Better yet ⬇️
Let’s (snow)blow!
You all make me smile. Let’s cheer for Old Man Winter trying to bring us some more beautiful ‘white gold’ because we need it and want it. And as for ‘poof’ I don’t give a poof ha ha. Let it SNOW!!
ReplyDeleteFrom the afternoon NWS discussion:
ReplyDeleteCooler and drier air will follow early next week with largely
tranquil weather expected until the next system to watch develops in
the central U.S. midweek. This system could be yet another event
with rain, snow, and everything in-between. One things for sure - it
would have been nice to see this weather pattern in January.
Ain’t that the truth about the last sentence!!!
Can’t put too much stock into it, especially at this range and it’s poor performance of the last potential storm but the GFS has significant snowfall >6” last couple of model runs for late Saturday.Other models not so much….
ReplyDeleteThanks for the updates. I keep wondering if the NOAA cuts to things like weather balloons are throwing off computer models. It seems like there are so many chances of snow, and then it doesn't pan out. Maybe it's just my mind playing tricks. And you are right, Bigdaddy, 'it would have been nice to see this weather pattern in January.'
DeleteWeatherGeek, I agree with you. I have been wondering the same thing. It’s gotten so bad that I no longer give more than a glance at models more than 48 hours from the start of the event. They consistently have shown snow, and often times decent amounts of snow of several inches, for the metro only to completely pull the snow out of the forecast or minimize it to less than an inch by the time the event finally arrives. I point out that I have also noticed this with the EURO model, which should not be subject to any cuts made here in the U.S.
ReplyDeleteSticking with the inaccuracy theme, the following inaccurate predictions/forecasts for the southern half of Minnesota have been on my mind recently:
ReplyDelete1. ABOVE average snowfall for 2024-2025 winter (What a JOKE!!! MAJOR FAIL!!!)
2. Spring will arrive late in 2025 (March temps are running more than 6 degrees ABOVE average as of today March 27!)
3. Strat Warming event will cause below to well below normal temps from mid-March to mid-April. (Really???? Where?)
I could continue to rant and voice my frustrations at another extremely disappointing winter, but I won’t. Yes, ice fisher people I see you. I am glad you had good ice this season. As for snow, fuhgeddaboudit!!
Thanks Tony and Schnee Meister…… I am watching the chances of precipitation seeming to vaporize from the forecasts even for tonight and tomorrow. Holey Moley. This morning I got excited as a NOAA weather spotter that I might get to see something tomorrow per NOAA, but that’s all gone now, too. Not that I wish severe anything on us. I guess I’ll just see what we get and hope that it’s something because we need the moisture. Thanks again, snow lovers.
ReplyDeleteThe GFS model is broken! It’s calling for over 6” by Sunday morning and then by Wednesday morning another 20” will fall.
ReplyDelete😂Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha 😂
Jon: You betcha! Timeanddate has been putting out crazy totals like that this entire 'winter.' They are echoing 7-8" this weekend. We all know how that will end up. Bummer. I again ask: why is this happening so much more often? Have a good weekend. Let's see what we get.
DeleteTalk about a temperature contrast, my friends/family in Grand Marais and Door County are forecasted to remain in the 20’s and 30’s through most of next week. Meanwhile here in the TC we have been in the 50’s and 60’s and are looking at mid-70’s today!
ReplyDeleteSo I just look and the metro was a winter weather advisory? Maybe because of the ice potential? Like I said above, 'Let's see what we get.'
ReplyDeleteOops HAS a WWA, not 'was'.... Sorry for the error in my wording. It has a WWA. And I see severe thunderstorm warnings north of Hinkley. Rollercoaster.
DeleteI know most people are focused on the near term with whatever potential we still have for overnight Saturday, I’m thinking in the 1-3” range but I’m squarely focused on late Tuesday/Wednesday, I think that’s our last “big” dump potential(8+), in fact the latest EURO model is showing 11” for the metro which for being 4 days out is interesting to say the least….so stay tuned!
ReplyDeleteAlmost two inches of rain and then some in most metro reporting this morning. Paul D says this is one of the 12th warmest Marches since record-keeping in 1895. So sad for we who love snow. And as for Wednesday and the predictions of snow? "I will believe it when I see it", sadly.
ReplyDeleteOfficially 1.7 inches of snow fell yesterday at MSP. That brings our paltry season total to 27.5 inches. Last season’s pathetic excuse for a winter recorded 31.8 inches, with 15.2 inches falling in March. There’s a winter storm watch out for tomorrow for 6+ inches of snow just north of the metro on up through Brainerd/Duluth area. It looks like those of us in the metro will probably see a mix that will turn to another cold rain. Looking ahead, I’m not confident this season’s snow total will even reach last season’s pitiful total. Just think, everyone (NWS, local Mets, Novak, etc.) predicted a snowier winter than average for us this season! They couldn’t have been more wrong!!
ReplyDeleteYeah sucks, a few days ago Tuesday was looking pretty solid for us but as is the case most times we ride a fine line here in the metro, I still think it snows tomorrow, I’m always of the mindset that if a snowstorm is close or snow is forecasted things sometimes can overachieve, now it looks like we’re missing the big snows again but I’m hoping it snows 4.3” tomorrow for shits and giggles and we end with two identical paltry 31.8” consecutive snow seasons….now I know the whole month of April we need to get thru but this seems like the best last chance as the pattern definitely quiets down after this next storm.
ReplyDeleteLooking at NOAA this morning: 29.4 inches of snow for the season (so still below that sad 31.8 Bigdaddy mentions above); we are doing okay precipitation-wise with all the winter RAIN we get, but we are 18.5 inches below our 'average' snowfall for a season. And don't we miss it, OH YEAH. Chan has 29.9 for the season but 19.7 inches below their average snowfall. It's more or less a wrap, don't you all think? I will enjoy the beautiful white snow globe out there this morning before it disappears.
ReplyDeleteMSP officially checked in with 2.1 inches from last night’s “surprise” snow (closer to 3 inches here in the Maple Grove/Plymouth area). I say “surprise” because the local Mets and NWS were calling for a mix with no accumulation. Novak, however, said we could get 2-3 inches…and he was right again! That officially brings us to 29.6 inches for the season. Another lame snow season for sure. It doesn’t appear any more is in the offing for this season. Believe it or not this is worse than last year’s anemic final total of 31.8 inches!! WeatherGeek, I agree this was likely our last hurrah until next fall. I took some beautiful pictures last night and this morning of the snow clinging to every tree branch, fence post, etc. It looked like a winter wonderland! A sight that has been too infrequent the past couple of years. Barring anything extraordinary, I am signing off. I hope everyone has a good year. I look forward to seeing you all again in October, which I pray will be the start of a wonderful winter season!
ReplyDeletePlease, no 3-peat!!
Oops! I stand corrected. Our season total is 29.4, not 29.6. It’s worst than I thought!
ReplyDeleteYup, until October, hopefully, and agree with 'please, no 3-peat!!!!!!!!'
DeleteToday’s National Weather Service forecast for my area, Crystal, is rain and 41 degrees. It hasn’t been any warmer than 35 so far. We had some rain mid-morning, but now it’s turned to big fat wet snowflakes!
ReplyDelete