Douglas: More rain ahead; flurries next week

Will there be snow for Thanksgiving? Maybe a little slush up north, but no full-on arctic fronts are brewing anytime soon. By late next week, daytime highs may be stuck in the 30s with flurries and possibly a few slushy lawns over northern Minnesota, but real winter is still on indefinite hold. Again.

Last year we were sliding into an El Niño warm phase of the Pacific Ocean, and only half an inch of snow fell at MSP during November 2023. Something similar may be setting up this year, despite a (slight) La Niña cooling phase. We will see winter, but winter shrinkage is real.

The sun should peek out today and Friday, with highs in the 50s, even though the sun now sets shortly after lunchtime (maybe that’s my imagination). Another surge of light rain arrives Saturday afternoon and Sunday, with more rain late Tuesday. ECMWF hints at another half-inch to 1 inch of rain by the middle of next week.

You may need to dust off your coat in about a week.