Warmth, then rain, then wind

Warmth, then rain, then wind:

December continues to track cooler than normal across Minnesota, with most climate stations reporting an average temperature so far that is 6°F to 10°F below normal. Many northern communities have already reported 10-12 nights of subzero temperatures, while even southern climate stations have reported 5-6 subzero nights.

Perhaps the most significant weather anomalies across Minnesota this past week were the significant warm up on December 16 and 17, followed by the rains early on December 18th, and the extremely high winds that followed. Following what had been consistently cooler than normal temperatures through the first two weeks of the month, December 16 and 17 brought temperatures that were 15°F to 20°F warmer than normal over much of the state. Daytime temperatures soared into the40s F and even some 50s F on those days. Some climate stations reported setting new record high daily maximum temperatures. Among these reports were:

December 16th:
47°F at Alexandria and Hibbing
48°F at Baudette
49°F at Detroit Lakes
F at International Falls

December 17th:
45°F at Grand Marais
46°F at Tower
47°F at Floodwood
50°F at Gull Lake and Cass Lake

The warmer air brought in higher dew points and more moisture, which produced rainfall overnight between December 17 and 18. Many areas reported rainfall amounts from 0.10 inches to 0.20 inches. The deep low-pressure system brought in some powerful winds as well, creating blizzard conditions in northwestern Minnesota when the precipitation turned into snow. Blizzard warnings were posted for Wilkin County in west-central Minnesota, north through Polk County and up to Kittson and Roseau Counties in the far northwest.

Wind gusts on Thursday were well over 40 mph in many areas of the state, making driving difficult. Many places reported maximum wind gusts that approached record values for the month of December. Some of these reports included:

51 mph at Rochester
51 mph at Worthington, Canby, Wheaton, Montevideo, and Hallock
52 mph at Olivia
53 mph at Crookston
54 mph at Moorhead
55 mph at St James and Redwood Falls
59 mph at Morris and Benson
60 mph at Tracy, Willmar, and Grand Marais
61 mph at Fergus Falls

Thankfully the weather will be quieter over the coming weekend, when a warming trend will start on Sunday, and carry through for the rest of the month, bringing mostly warmer than normal daily temperatures.

Weekly Weather Potpourri:

The journal Nature, along with other news organizations (NY Times, USA Today, CNN) reported this week on the intention of the Trump administration to break-up and dismantle the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), a leading research and development organization in place since 1960. NCAR has helped the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and National Weather Service become much more proficient and accurate in the monitoring and forecasting of weather and climate patterns all over the world. They have employed some of the most renowned atmospheric and climate scientists for several generations, including Dr. Warren Washington and Dr. Clare Parkingson (global climate and ocean modeling), Dr. Kevin Trenberth (the nature and character of precipitation processes), Dr. Charles and Dr. Nancy Knight (the formation and dynamics of hail in the atmosphere), Dr. Tom Wigley (methods of detecting climate change), and Dr. Stephen Schneider (founder of the journal Climate Change, and advisor to many Presidents on environmental matters). This dismantling of NCAR is a major setback to our nation and the world in terms of our need to adapt to climate change and find a way to mitigate or reverse the pace of change.

This week’s AGU EOS Bulletin featured an article about this year’s Arctic Report Card. It was the warmest ever year in the Arctic, especially warm in the autumn season. There was dramatic loss of sea ice ass well. It was also the wettest year in the Arctic, with an especially wet spring season. The article also points out that recent federal budget cuts have diminished prospects for continuing with good observation data from the Arctic and may impede further analysis of the impacts of climate change in that region.

The BBC Weather Center reported this week that England has recorded its sunniest year in history during 2025 with measured records of sunshine going back to 1910. All months except for February and October, recorded above average hours of sunshine. The spring season was exceptionally sunny and warm, as well as the driest in 50 years. They say that the country enjoyed especially high frequencies of high pressure systems during the year, which brought very sunny skies.

MPR listener question:

What's has been the longest lasting snowstorm in the Twin Cities area? It seems that most of the
snowstorms last for just a few hours and sometimes up to a day in length.

Answer:

The longest duration of continuous falling snow was from shortly after midnight on December 6th to shortly after 5 pm on December 9th in 1969, a period of 88 hours! This was very light snow, amounting to a total of 14.0 inches in Minneapolis and 14.2 inches in St Paul. The December total snowfall that year was 33.2 inches, an all-time record for the month.

Heavier and more memorable snowstorms were not as long-lasting. For example, the Halloween Blizzard of 1991 (over 28 inches of snowfall) occurred over a period of 67 hours, while the Armistice Day Blizzard of 1940 (nearly 17 inches of snowfall) lasted about 55 hours.

Twin Cities Almanac for December 19th:

The average MSP high temperature for this date is 28 degrees F (plus or minus 13 degrees F standard deviation), while the average low is14 degrees F (plus or minus 14 degrees F standard deviation).

MSP Local Records for December 19th:

MSP records for this date: highest daily maximum temperature of 52 degrees F in 1923; lowest daily maximum temperature of-11 degrees F in 1983; lowest daily minimum temperature of -29 degrees F in 1983; highest daily minimum temperature of 38 degrees F in 1923; and record precipitation of 0.51 inches in 1968. Record snowfall for this date is 6.1 inches in 1951.

Average dew point for December 19th is 10°F; the maximum dew point on this date is 39°F in 1918 and the minimum dew point on this date is -31 degrees F in 1955

All-time state records for December 19th:

The state record high temperature for this date is 61 degrees F at Pipestone (Pipestone County) in 1923. The state record low temperature for this date is -52 degrees F at Tower (St Louis County) in 1983. The statewide record for precipitation on this date is 1.35 inches at Luverne (Rock County) in 1902. A record 11.5 inches of snow fell at Two Harbors (Lake County County) in 2008.

Past Weather:

On December 19 of 1923 over two dozen Minnesota climate communities saw new record daily high maximum temperatures prevail. It was a sunny day with little or no snow on the ground. Many areas of the state reported afternoon high temperatures in the 50s F. It was in the 50s F as far north as Duluth and Two Harbors.

A slow-moving winter storm brought heavy snow to southern Minnesota on December 19 of 1968. Many areas reported 7 to 9 inches of snowfall. Winona and Springfield reported over 10 inches. Many areas reported over 30 inches of total snowfall that December.

December 19 of 1983 was one for the record books in terms of cold. Tower (St Louis County) reported a record-setting morning low temperature of -52°F, and many other climate stations reported record cold readings in the minus 40s F and minus 30s F. The daytime high temperature at Ada (Norman County) only made it to -20°F. Furthermore, Wind Chill values were extremely dangerous that day, ranging from -50°F to -65°F in many areas.

Outlook:

Mostly sunny over the weekend with warmer than normal temperatures by Sunday. Temperatures will continue to be warmer than normal across Minnesota during Christmas week. In fact, some areas will see thawing temperatures over Tuesday through Thursday. There will be a slight chance of snow on Christmas Day in northern areas of the state.