The National Weather Service says a large, slow-moving storm system will bring two cycles of heavy snow to the Upper Midwest this week, adding the impacts from travel will likely be Tuesday night through Thursday night. Blown snow and blizzard conditions may also be on the menu.
Confidence in significant snow accumulation and travel impacts Tuesday through Thursday is building. There is still uncertainty about the exact times and amounts, but the overall system is large and slow.
The storm is several days away, so while there are still uncertainties such as exact amounts of snowfall, exact timing, and where the heaviest snowbands will line up, several forecasting models are starting to reach agreement on what could be a big event. snowy southern Minnesota.
The European model
The European forecast model predicts large amounts of new snow across much of the state. 28.7 inches for Faribault, 25.2 for Owatonna, 23.6 for Rochester, over 30 inches for Twin Cities parts. Did you understand.
The American model
Now things get a little more interesting, because while the different models differ a bit in quantities and drift north or south for heavier totals, the bottom line is that they all look like they should be dumped — big time. This time we have 21.1 inches for Faribault, 16.1 for Owatonna, 14.2 for Rochester and, again, nearly 30 inches for Twin Cities parts.
The Canadian model
OK, now we’re three by three. While things still vary a bit, the common theme is that as of right now it looks like some parts of Minnesota will get a lot of snow. The Canadian model requires 22.7 inches in Faribault, 22.2 in Owatonna, 21.3 in Rochester, and about 20 inches in the Twin Cities Metro.
While all of this seems to be leaning towards a day or two of snow, the storm is still several days away and a lot could change. Stay tuned, monitor the forecast, and make sure you’ve fueled your snowthrower.
