St. Cloud Weather

While a white Christmas in Minnesota is never a sure thing, odds across most of the state are usually in its favor. Here in St. Cloud we have a historical probability of about 75% that our Christmases will be white-- but what about this year? Here's what the experts are saying.

The National Weather Service has issued a Winter Weather Advisory to include St. Cloud for the possibility of 5-8 inches of snow today & tonight, possibly mixing with freezing drizzle on Tuesday. A Winter Storm Warning has been issued for Southwestern Minnesota, including Willmar, Morris, Mankato, and Albert Lea. Here's the latest:

A storm system will bring precipitation to the Midwest early next week. Heavy snow accumulations, with 6+ inches, will likely accompany this system Monday afternoon into Tuesday.

Snow flurries are passing through Central Minnesota Thursday morning. The National Weather Service says brief reduced visibility and slick roads are expected mainly along and north of I94.

For a second day in a row, we had record rainfall in St. Cloud. The official total for yesterday (Wednesday) at the St. Cloud Regional Airport was .98 of an inch.

The National Weather Service says the likelihood of snow in Central Minnesota has diminished, but rain and wind will take it's place beginning tomorrow. Parts of southern Minnesota could see up to 2" of rain with 50 mph winds. Here in St. Cloud it should be closer to a half-inch of rain and 20-30 mph winds.

The National Weather Service is saying that a strong storm system will move into our area beginning Wednesday with showers, light rain mixing with snow, possibly changing to all snow (with the best chance of snow across Central and East Central Minnesota into Western Wisconsin) late Thursday into Friday.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) predicts that a strong El Nino in the Pacific Ocean will likely cause a warmer and drier than average winter across Central Minnesota for 2015-2016.

The time to cover your plants has arrived in Central Minnesota, as the National Weather Service has issued a Frost Advisory for tonight across the area. Plants and vegetation left outdoors could be damaged or possibly killed if left uncovered. Overnight temps are expected to drop into the low to mid thirties.

It's going to be a rainy couple of days here in Central Minnesota -- but things are looking great for the weekend ahead. We could see up to 2 inches of rain between now and Thursday. Reminder that in Minnesota, having your headlights on when it's raining is the law.

The National Weather Service says a cold front will pass through the region tonight, and ahead of it warm and breezy conditions can be expected today along with periods of showers and thunderstorms -- and some of the thunderstorms could be severe. We'll have any watches and warnings for you on The Loon.

According to meteorologist Don Day, it looks like a drier and warmer than normal winter in Central Minnesota this season. If you're a weather geek like I am, you'll enjoy this video about the effect El Nino will likely have across the U.S. for the upcoming months.