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Projected snowfall amounts (cm)
tonight into midday Friday |
Spring officially arrived at 11:57 am this morning, but it looks like Old Man Winter didn't get the memo as he gets ready to send another wintery blast across southern Manitoba tonight into Friday. A storm system over southern Saskatchewan this afternoon will track across North Dakota tonight into Minnesota Friday, spreading an area of snow across southern Manitoba tonight. Precipitation may even start as some rain or freezing rain south of the TransCanada highway to the international border this evening before changing to snow as the evening progresses. Snow will overspread southern Manitoba tonight with the bulk of the snowfall expected mainly over the southern RRV into SE MB towards the US border. (NOTE: Winter storm warnings are in effect south of the border) Snow will likely spread into Winnipeg this evening with 2 or 3 cm possible overnight. As the storm system heads east, northerly winds will increase on the backside of the system early Friday bringing much colder air from the Arctic. Strong north winds gusting to 70 or 80 km/h Friday morning will cause blowing and drifting snow in open areas, with poor traveling conditions likely outside the Perimeter, especially over the southern RRV. Things should generally improve in the afternoon and evening as winds ease off, however temperatures will be falling through the day with readings near minus 15C by evening making for icy conditions after today's melt. This latest blast of wintery weather will be the start of yet another spell of below normal temperatures across southern MB that will likely persist much of next week. This will ensure that March ends up as the 6th consecutive month below normal in Winnipeg.
UPDATE: Actual snowfall amounts from Thursday night storm system (map courtesy of
NWS Grand Forks, amounts in inches). The storm system had a fairly narrow area of heavier snowfall mainly south of the US border into NW Ontario where 10-20 cm was reported. Snowfall amounts dropped off sharply over southern Manitoba with only 1 or 2 cm over the southern RRV. Little or no snow fell in Winnipeg.
Rob, do you think there is some heavy sleet or freezing rain in Central North Dakota this evening?? There is some bright returns on radar now!!
ReplyDeleteLooks like snow is staying mainly south of the city.. very little push northward as system dives south. May see a dusting here in the city overnight, but steadier snow should be staying south tonight.
ReplyDeleteSystem was a dud for southern MB.. Nothing in Winnipeg.. 1 cm in Steinbach overnight, 2-3 cm for southern RRV. Not that I'm complaining.. I'd be happy if we didn't see another snowflake until next December!
ReplyDeleteSame here, glad there was no snow! Rob,I notice that most models are showing a warming trend mid-late next week, with upper single digits possible by late next weekend. Do you think that we may finally start getting into a more true spring pattern after this latest well below normal spell?
ReplyDeleteAnonymous.. Hard to say. Until we get rid of this snowpack, I think we're going to stay generally below normal on average, which will likely be into mid April at least. The occasional warm-ups to normal we're getting seem to last only a few days, then it's back to below normal for awhile. I don't have any evidence to suggest a change to this pattern in April. Hopefully, things moderate more quickly in April and we can get rid of this snowpack earlier than last year. But be forewarned.. springs following very cold winters are usually below normal here, and it looks like that trend is continuing this year.
ReplyDeleteThanks Rob, guess we will just have to keep fingers crossed, hope for the best & see what Mother Nature brings us in April & Beyond.
ReplyDeleteRob, do you think temps will actually rise into upper single digits on the plus side next weekend like some models are hinting?
ReplyDeleteAnonymous.. Upper single digits for Winnipeg next weekend is a bit optimistic, given our snowpack and the extensive snowpack to our west. But +3 to +5C certainly looks possible if those long range models work out. But it's not a given.. and I see that the latest GFS has knocked back that warm up substantially on today's runs. So there's still a lot of uncertainty on how much that warm up will be later next week..
ReplyDeleteAs we near the end of March, any updates on how far below normal temps this month and winter overall are now? Snowfall?
ReplyDeleteRob Or anyone What is the correct oral pronounciation of -20C and -2F I ask because TV Mets from Canada have used "20 Below in Calgary on a Cdn channel this morning and on a US channel Minus 2" in Grand Forks
ReplyDeleteAnonymous..
ReplyDeleteTraditionally, "minus" has been reserved for the Celsius scale, and "below" for the F scale. But I've also noticed the increasing use of "minus" for the F scale south of the border. I just wish the US would join the rest of the world and use Celsius already! (I believe the US is the only country in the world to still use the Fahrenheit scale)
Thanks Rob and I apologize for the incorrect spelling of "pronunciation". Same sort of mistake. We often pronounce words with local dialects. Eventially we may get both "Below" and "Minus" accepted but it is confusing.
ReplyDeleteGiven how bad these past couple of winters and springs have been, I can only look forward to the possibility that next winter/spring may be warmer and less snowy than normal. We have signals of an El Nino developing by the fall which hopefully will strengthen through the winter, and past history suggests harsh winters with lots of snow here are often followed by much tamer winters within a year or two. We can only hope..
ReplyDeleteRob, do you think these back to back brutal winters here last year and this year followed by horrible springs is the beginning of s trend towards colder winters and springs becoming the norm here over the coming years?
ReplyDeleteOne side of my face was getting frostbitten today, while the other side was getting a suntan. Only in Southern Manitoba :)
ReplyDelete>>Anonymous said... Rob, do you think these back to back brutal winters here last year and this year followed by horrible springs is the beginning of a trend towards colder winters and springs becoming the norm here over the coming years?
ReplyDeleteI don't think it is. Every so often, we have these cold back to back winters/springs, but they're often followed by much less severe winters and warmer springs in the years ahead. We have a very variable climate that is prone to extremes, good and bad. Given that we possibly have an El Nino developing later this year (according to latest ENSO models) and the overall warming global climate, I remain cautiously optimistic that next winter and next spring will be much better than the last couple of years here.
If they're not, it's time to seriously think about moving.