Good afternoon everyone! This will be a brief update regarding freezing fog and light snow chances through Sunday. The scattered flurries/light snow showers we were tracking this morning has pushed through a majority of MN with a few patches still hanging around near Duluth and far southeastern MN as of 4:15pm CST. The weak shortwave trough that is associated with these snows is pushing out of MN currently and will lift these pesky flurries/light snow showers out of the region over the next couple of hours. Elsewhere remains dry.
Into tonight and Saturday morning, we continue to note the development of patchy freezing fog/drizzle, especially those with a snowpack. Shown below is the region with the highest potential for this patchy freezing fog/drizzle, which includes portions of SD into MN. The second image below depicts temperatures as we roll into 6am CST Saturday. The whole region will be well below freezing with many falling into the single digits (especially areas with deeper snowpack). We can’t rule out a few locations dropping below 0ºF, mainly in southeastern SD and northeastern MN. With any fog that develops in the area, the water molecules in the air will likely freeze on contact with any surfaces which could lead to some slick spots on the roadways.
A weak wave will push in and produce some high clouds tomorrow in the eastern Dakotas into the southern two-thirds of MN. Most areas will have dryness in the mid-levels, which won’t allow much in the way of precipitation to develop and reach the surface. However, as shown below, higher saturation levels in eastern SD into southern MN will allow for isolated pockets of light snow showers/freezing drizzle. Something to keep mindful of if traveling.
Simulated radar from 6am CST Saturday through 12am CST Monday: We’ll start off Saturday morning with very light flurry chances in far eastern SD into southern MN. As previously discussed, light freezing fog/drizzle will be possible in the previously aforementioned areas. These scattered light flurry risks remain through the day before the weak disturbance that lifts into the region can spark isolated patches of light snow/freezing drizzle Saturday evening in northeastern SD and far southeastern ND. This light precipitation risk will remain through the nighttime hours while also including MN (especially the southern portions of the state). Isolated coverage will dwindle into Sunday morning, but chances for flurries/very light snow will remain in eastern SD before dropping south into the Central Plains Sunday evening. Little to no snow accumulation is expected for most, but we can’t rule out isolated locations picking up a very light dusting of snow.
If you have any questions do not hesitate to reach out! Have a great weekend!