Recent trends in April snowfall

Recent trends in April snowfall:

Since April of 2000 most years have brought at least a trace of snowfall to the Twin Cities during the first week of April (April 1-7). The list below shows the percentage of April 1-7 that delivered some type of snow to the Twin Cities over the past 26 years (2000-2025)

87% brought at least a trace of snow
42% brought a measurable amount of snowfall (0.1 inches or greater)
31% brought a snowfall of at least 1.0 inches or greater

With snow I the forecast for Friday night and Saturday, the Twin Cities will report snow during the first week of April for 5 consecutive years (2022-2026)

Since April is a huge transition month weather wise, these percentages are interesting to compare to the last week of April (April 24-30). The list below shows the percentage of April 24-30 that delivered some type of snow to the Twin Cities over the past 26 years (2000-2025)

38% brought at least a trace of snow
8% brought a measurable amount of snowfall (0.1 inches or greater)
4% brought a snowfall of at least 1.0 inches or greater

Former State Climatologist Jim Zandlo made a concerted effort in the 1990s to expand the snowfall observation networks in Minnesota. His good work allowed for a better geographical picture of snowfall variation across the state. With the more expansive network it is far more insightful to examine year to year variations in snowfall across Minnesota, as well as the huge disparities in total snowfall that occur geographically.

In this context, I examined the range in total April snowfall across Minnesota for each year since 2000. The geographical variations can be extreme, for example 0 inches in many places to 55 inches at Island Lake in St Louis County in the year 2013. More importantly, the north-central and northeastern counties (especially along Lake Superior), very consistently report the highest April total snowfall amounts, even in Aprils where the rest of the state reports zero snowfall. The list below summarizes the range in total April snowfall across Minnesota since the year 2000. Please note the enormous variation in selected years.

2000    0-12 inches      2001    0-21 inches      2002    0-20 inches      2003    0-18 inches

2004    0-2 inches        2005    0-1 inches        2006    0-4 inches        2007    0-16 inches

2008    0-46 inches      2009    0-19 inches      2010    0-Trace            2011    0-22 inches

2012    0-25 inches      2013    0-55 inches      2014    0-28 inches      2015    0-10 inches

2016    0-16 inches      2017    0-8 inches        2018    0-43 inches      2019    0-26 inches

2020    0-12 inches      2021    0-6 inches        2022    0-29 inches      2023    0-32 inches

2024    0-9 inches        2025    0-18 inches

Extreme values for April are striking:  maximum one day snowfall of 28 inches at Pigeon River (Cook County) on April 5 of 1933, and a monthly total snowfall of 55.6 inches at Island Lake (St Louis County) in April of 2013.  

It will be interesting to see what the variation in April snowfall looks like this year.

Weekly Weather Potpourri:

The Weather Underground web site reported this week that a record warm March occurred in scores of cities from Texas and the western states. Phoenix, AZ reported its warmest March in history, surpassing the previous record by 6.5°F. Many other major cities reported their warmest month of March as well, including Dallas, San Antonio, Oklahoma City, Albuquerque, Denver, Salt Lake City, Las Vegas, Los Angeles and San Francisco. A record-setting 11-day Heat Wave contributed mightily to this warm March, with many areas reporting several days of 100°F or greater temperatures.

A recent study from the University of Alaska examined the decline in landfast sea ice around northern Alaska. The study, published by the AGU documents the rapid loss of semi-permanent sea ice, especially in the Beaufort Sea. In many areas, the ice forms later in the fall and breaks up earlier in the spring. Researchers suggest that this means more dangerous travel, uncertain hunting conditions, and greater exposure to coastal erosion for cultures living in the area.

MPR listener question:

Has there ever been an April when no snowfall occurred across Minnesota?

Answer:

This is difficult to answer because in the first 100 years or so of state climate records the snowfall reports were very sparse geographically speaking, and so a large area of the state that is today known to reliably report snow in April had no data to report. But for the modern era, the only year I can find when April delivered no measurable amounts of snowfall was 2010. That April only a handful of places like Grand Portage and Gunflint Lake reported a trace of snow in April.

Twin Cities Almanac for April 3rd:

The average MSP high temperature for this date is 51 degrees F (plus or minus 11 degrees F standard deviation), while the average low is 32 degrees F (plus or minus 8 degrees F standard deviation).

MSP Local Records for April 3rd:

MSP records for this date: highest daily maximum temperature of 80 degrees F in 1921; lowest daily maximum temperature of 24 degrees F in 1874; lowest daily minimum temperature of 9 degrees F in 1954; highest daily minimum temperature of 52 degrees F in 1921, and record precipitation of 0.84 inches in 1974. Record snowfall for this date is 7.5 inches in 2018.

Average dew point for April 3rd is 26°F; the maximum dew point on this date is 58°F in 1956 and the minimum dew point on this date is -5 degrees F in 1954.

All-time statewide records for April 3rd:

The state record high temperature for this date is 86 degrees F at Beardsley (Big Stone County) in 1929. The state record low temperature for this date is -19 degrees F at Big Falls (Koochiching County) in 1954 and at Thorhult (Beltrami County) in 1975. The statewide record for precipitation on this date is 3.05 inches at Farmington (Dakota County) in 1934. A record 15.0 inches of snow fell at Warroad (Roseau County) on this date in 1959 and at Hovland (Cook County) in 2025..

Past Weather:

Record-setting high maximum temperatures prevailed in southern and western Minnesota on April 3 of 1921. Observers in 10 counties reported a maximum temperature of 80°F or greater, and most other counties reported temperatures in the 70s F. There was no snow on the ground, so even nighttime temperatures remained in the 50s F in many areas.

Bitter cold prevailed across the state on April 3 of 1954. With 10 to 20 inches of snow on the ground, many climate stations reported record-setting low temperatures. Morning lows ranged from the single digits to -19°F in the far north. Park Rapids reported an afternoon high temperature of 12°F.

Last year (2025), over April 1-3, a late season winter storm brought rain and snow to most of Minnesota, some of it in record amounts. Many western and northern sections of the state reported from 10 inches to 15 inches of snowfall. Observers near Fergus Falls and Hovland reported over 15 inches. In some cases, it was the largest dose of snow for the 2024-2025 snow season.

Outlook:

A rain/snow mix is in store for many places on Saturday, with areas of heavy snow in the west and north and perhaps some freezing rain across central MN and west-central WI. It will be sunnier but still cool on Sunday with a slight chance of snow in the north. Cool weather continues for early next week, with a warm up on Wednesday and increasing chances for rain or snow as we migrate towards the end of next week.