Ground Blizzards Expected Friday With Wind Gusts Of 40 MPH In The Metro

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Snow totals up to 8.5" were reported from Wednesday's snowfall in the metro area, with that top total occurring in Green Isle. We also saw a total of 8.3" in Ham Lake, 8.1" at MSP and in Robbinsdale and Ramsey, and 8" in Lakeville. At MSP Airport, 7.4" of that fell on Wednesday (the rest technically fell on Thursday), which set a new record for Wednesday. The previous record for December 21st was 5.3" in 1920.

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As of posting time, no travel advisories were in place across a good portion of south-central and southwestern Minnesota, and MNDOT was closing parts of I-90 and Highway 60.

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While we have pushed the snow out of the region (for the most part), phase two is underway: the whiteout/blizzard portion of this storm. Wind gusts of at least 40 mph can be expected across a good portion of the state Thursday Night into Friday, with some areas of the North Shore and southern Minnesota seeing wind gusts approaching 50 mph. Travel will be hazardous as we head through the next day or so across the region due to ground blizzards.

While it'll be in the single digits and teens below zero as we wake up Friday morning across the state, it'll feel more like the -30s and -40s out there with the expected strong winds.

Another absolutely frigid day is ahead in the Twin Cities on Friday with a mix of sun and clouds. Highs will try - but not likely succeed - to make it above zero. Wind gusts are likely to be up around 40 mph throughout the day.

When you factor in the strong winds here in the metro, gusting upward of 40-45 mph, it'll feel like the -20s and -30s throughout the day Friday. Wind chills in the -20s and -30s can continue to be expected for the lowest wind chills both Saturday and Sunday, though on Sunday we should start to see them improve during the day as winds die down a little bit.

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No snow will be falling from the sky Saturday across the state as we will continue to see quite chilly weather and mainly sunny skies. Unfortunately with temperatures still this cold road conditions could be a little slick and tricky. Breezy winds will also continue to be in place - out of the west-northwest gusting to 35 mph.

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The good news is that we will see warmer weather return as we head into next week across the Twin Cities, with highs back into the 20s by Tuesday and 30s for the second half of the week. It definitely looks like a warmer New Year's Eve and start to 2023 than it will be for Christmas.

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Ground Blizzards Today - Thaw Next Week
By Paul Douglas

Welcome to "Survivor: Minnesota Edition". If you survive - you're a winner! Some days I wonder if early settlers at Fort Snelling in the 1830s complained about the bitter cold. Or were they stoic and accepting, grateful for a harvest generous enough to sustain them through anything?

A tight pressure gradient with an intensifying "bomb cyclone" (how the media loves weather acronyms) will turn on peak gusts as high as 40-50 mph today, with more ground blizzards, white-outs and dangerous wind chills.

A Christmas Clipper may drop 1-2" Sunday night but next week will bring a puff of Pacific air. 30s will feel amazing!

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Paul's Extended Twin Cities Forecast

FRIDAY: Ground-blizzards. Bitter. Wake up -8. High 0. Chance of precipitation 10%. Wind NW 20-45 mph.

SUNDAY: Clouds increase, 1-2" snow at night. Wake up -7. High 6. Chance of precipitation 70%. Wind SW 5-10 mph.

MONDAY: Early flakes, then clearing. Wake up 1. High 10. Chance of precipitation 30%. Wind NE 10-15 mph.

TUESDAY: Some sun, feels a bit better. Wake up -2. High 22. Chance of precipitation 20%. Wind SE 8-13 mph.

WEDNESDAY: Breezy. I can feel my toes again! Wake up 21. High 33. Chance of precipitation 20%. Wind S 10-20 mph.

THURSDAY: Partly sunny and cooler. Wake up 24. High 28. Chance of precipitation 10%. Wind NW 8-13 mph.

Minneapolis Weather Almanac And Sun Data
December 23rd

*Length Of Day: 8 hours, 46 minutes, and 19 seconds
*Daylight GAINED Since Yesterday: 6 seconds

*When do we see 9 Hours of Daylight?: January 9th (9 hours, 0 minutes, 8 seconds)
*Latest Sunrise: December 30th-January 5th (7:51 AM)
*When is Sunset at/after 5 PM?: January 17th (5:00 PM)

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This Day in Weather History
December 23rd

1983: The Twin Cities experience a bitterly cold high of 17 degrees below zero.

1833: A 'warm spell' is reported at Ft. Snelling. The temperature reached 45 degrees.

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The powerful system across the Great Lakes will continue on Friday, bringing heavy snow to the region and high winds from the Upper Midwest to the Northeast. Another system in the Northwest will bring rain, snow, and ice concerns.

Several feet of snow is expected to accumulate the next few days in the Great Lakes, especially in the snowbelts down wind. Heavy rainfall (1-3") will be possible in the warm sector of the storm in the Northeast and along the Northwest coast. Meanwhile, snow and ice will be possible in the Northwest.

Along with the cold temperatures, those strong winds will cause dangerous wind chills. Both Friday morning and Saturday morning, wind chills could dip below zero across portions of the Southern Plains and the Deep South. Meanwhile, wind chills in portions of the upper Midwest could be in the -50s in the morning hours.

Meanwhile, we are tracking another system that'll move into the Pacific Northwest into Friday, bringing the threat of snow and ice to the region - including in Seattle and Portland. Significant icing could fall around the Portland area, where at least a quarter to a half an inch of ice is possible. The greatest icing threat in Portland will be tonight into Friday. Snow and ice will greatly impact travel across the region and could cause power outages.

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How cold is it about to get? Iguanas may fall from trees in Florida.

More from the Washington Post: "Watch out for falling iguanas in South Florida this Christmas. Seriously. This week, a massive storm system is forecast to bring blizzard conditions, wind chills and Arctic cold to the Lower 48. Nearly 70 million people are under winter storm watches or warnings in the Midwest, Great Lakes and Appalachians, while 90 million are under wind chill alerts. The frigid air is also expected to immobilize coldblooded animals. Iguanas sleeping in trees may lose their grip and drop to the ground. Sea turtles may stun and blow ashore from Texas to New England."

More from the Star Tribune: "Google has backed out of plans to build a $600 million data center in Becker, a blow to the city as well as Sherburne County and Xcel Energy. The data center, announced in January 2019, was heralded as one of the largest construction projects in recent state history and as a regional economic balm. Google also would have become one of Xcel's five largest customers. But Google's affiliate, Honeycrisp Power, did not provide Xcel with a notice to proceed with the project by a recent deadline, Xcel said in a filing with Minnesota utility regulators. So, Minneapolis-based Xcel terminated its electric service agreements with Google on Dec. 8."

'We're Not There Yet': The Booming Electric Car Market Still Has A Long Road Ahead Of It

More from Forbes: "U.S. drivers bought electric cars and trucks at a record rate in 2022, heralding double-digit growth in 2023 as major automakers and startups roll out eye-catching new models. But high sticker prices, costly batteries and lingering concerns about charging infrastructure will continue to constrain growth—particularly outside of California. Sales of EVs are projected to be about 800,000 units in 2022, accounting for more than 5% of the overall market, according to Cox Automotive. Plans for new models and production facilities, including tens of billions of dollars being poured into new plants to make batteries for companies including General Motors, Ford and Hyundai mean the segment could grow by about 20% next year and hit the one million-unit level, reaching as much as 8% of total U.S. volume, according to Cox. It's an impressive figure, but it also means that gasoline-powered autos will still account for more than 90% of sales."

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- D.J. Kayser