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Oh no! Say it ain't snow!
GFS valid 7 pm Sunday March 17
showing storm system over Dakotas
bringing next snow threat to RRV |
Winter continues to hang in tough over southern Manitoba and much of central Canada as a sprawling Arctic airmass spreads across the Prairies. Temperatures will be running some 10-15 degrees below normal in southern MB this weekend, with highs remaining below the -10C mark and lows dropping into the minus 20s, temperatures more typical of mid January than mid March.
(Normal highs in Winnipeg at this time of year are around 0C with lows of -11C). Mainly sunny skies are expected Saturday with clear and cold conditions Saturday night as a ridge of high pressure builds into southern MB. On Sunday, skies will be clouding over ahead of yet another storm system that will be impacting southern Manitoba later Sunday into Monday. This storm system is forecast to track across Montana into North Dakota, bringing snow into Winnipeg and the Red River valley by late Sunday afternoon. Snow will continue Sunday night into Monday morning before tapering off by Monday afternoon. At this time, it looks like a general 5-15 cm of snow can be expected across southern Manitoba with this system, with the potential for locally higher amounts. Northerly winds will also be increasing on the backside of this system Monday, which will result in blowing and drifting snow. This will make for a slow and tricky commute Monday morning with snow covered and slippery roads, so be prepared to allow extra time for your Monday morning routine.
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6-10 day temperature outlook
valid March 21-25th 2013
showing no signs of spring |
Colder weather will follow in the wake of this system with generally dry conditions much of next week.. although temperatures will remain well below normal. Spring officially begins Wednesday March 20th.. but obviously, Mother nature didn't get the memo as the extended winter of 2012-13 continues well past its due date. Note that Winnipeg has yet to climb above the freezing mark this month with a high of -1.1C on the 3rd. If we don't get above freezing by the end of the month, it will mark the first time since 1899 that Winnipeg has failed to climb above freezing in March.
Yikes.. already -27C at Brandon at 11 pm!
ReplyDeleteFirst time we haven't reached 0c since 1899! The 1971-2000 climate norms show an average of 15.2 days with temps >0c in March, compared to possibly NONE this year! I'm sure the 1981-2010 normals (to be published finally in June apparently) would be even warmer.
ReplyDeleteI don't remember a winter with a solid snow cover still at spring break (last week of March). At least my snowman is happy.
I see snowfall warnings for southwestern Manitoba, but no warnings or winter storm watches or anything for the rest of southern Manitoba. Does this mean we wont get much here with this next storm?
ReplyDeleteNot necessarily....E.C. does have a Secial Weather Statement in place for the rest of Southern MB indicating the warnings could be expanded eastward later today.
ReplyDelete**correction** Special weather statement and not secial weather statement
ReplyDeleteRob how about a new snow poll for this upcoming event?
ReplyDeleteNAM brings in the possibility of a blizzard on Monday with northwest winds gusting to 70 km/h. Other models seem less aggressive in that idea, but winds will be a problem nonetheless.
ReplyDeleteNow the NAM is pushing the heaviest snow way up into the Interlake and Berens River area. As usual this time of year, the models have a hard time making up their minds.
ReplyDeleteThis time of the year? The models have had problems all winter.
ReplyDeleteAhh, and it was 19.9°C this day last year. I can recall seeing bees out already when I was in Portage la Prairie that day.
ReplyDeleteSeveral models have us dipping past -30C tonight! Seems a bit extreme.
ReplyDeleteYeah, -30C not likely for Winnipeg airport tonight. Winds shift into the SE overnight and that will halt the drop.. but -25 or -26C certainly possible before then. Could see some -30C readings outside the city though.
ReplyDeleteModels in pretty good agreement in bringing about 10-15 cm of snow for Winnipeg Sunday afternoon through Sunday night into Monday morning. Bulk of snow expected Sunday night which will make a mess of the Monday morning drive. In addition, northerly winds will be picking up Monday morning with gusts to 60 km/h likely by mid morning.. so blowing and drifting snow will be an issue. In fact, we could be looking at blizzard conditions through the RRV Monday especially outside the city. Blech.. not a good start to the week.
Carman down to -26.5C as of 10 pm.. RRV cold spot so far.
ReplyDeleteWas in Grand Forks today where they hit a record low of -15F (-26C) this morning. Record high for today was set just last year.. 73F (23C) Talk about March madness!
ReplyDelete-29C at Carman and Carberry are MB cold spots as of 11 pm. Unofficial reading of -30.7C at Somerset MB ag-wx site. Brutal.
ReplyDeleteNWS GFK has posted a winter storm warning for all of northern ND into NW Minnesota for late Sunday into Monday. 6-9" of snow (15-23 cm) along with blowing snow especially Monday with blizzard conditions possible.
ReplyDeleteWill be posting an update on Sunday's storm system tomorrow morning. Night all!
ReplyDelete