You Won’t Believe How Much Snow the Models are Predicting for Minnesota

The National Weather Service says that a large and slow-moving storm system will bring two rounds of heavy snow to the Upper Midwest this week, adding that travel impacts are likely Tuesday night through Thursday night. Blowing snow and blizzard conditions could also be on the menu.

Confidence is increasing in significant accumulating snow and travel impacts late Tuesday through Thursday. There is still uncertainty on exact timing and amounts, but overall system is large and slow-moving.

The storm is several days away, so while there are still uncertainties such as exact snowfall amounts, and exact timing and where the heaviest bands of snow will line up -- several forecast models are beginning to come to an agreement that spells out what could be a big snow event across southern Minnesota.

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The European Model

The European forecast model is calling for hefty amounts of new snow across most of the state. 28.7 inches for Faribault, 25.2 for Owatonna, 23.6 for Rochester, more than 30 inches for parts of the Twin Cities. You get the idea.

The American Model

Now things get a little more interesting, because while the different models differ a bit in amounts and shifts north or south for the heaviest totals, the bottom line is that they are all looking like we're going to get dumped on -- big time. This time we have 21.1 inches for Faribault, 16.1 for Owatonna, 14.2 for Rochester, and again, nearly 30 inches for parts of the Twin Cities.

The Canadian Model

OK, now were three for three. While things vary again a bit, the common theme is that as of now, it looks like parts of Minnesota are gonna get a lot of snow. The Canadian model is calling for 22.7 inches in Faribault, 22.2 for Owatonna, 21.3 for Rochester, and around 20 inches for the Twin Cities metro.

While all of this appears to be trending towards a snow day or two, the storm is still several days away and a lot can change. Stay tuned, monitor forecasts, and make sure you gave gas in your snow blower.