Tag: Windy

Weekend Snow Brings Early-February Cold Snap to Southern Manitoba

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A low pressure system crossing the Prairies will bring more snow to Winnipeg and area this weekend, but its cold front will usher Arctic air back into the region.

RDPS 2m Temperature Forecast valid 06Z Sunday February 2, 2025
A passing low pressure system will bring light snow and another day of seasonably mild temperatures before Arctic air pushes back into the area.

A cold front slumped through the region yesterday evening, northerly winds and cooler temperatures for the end of the work week. Daytime highs in the Winnipeg area will sit in the -20 to -15 °C range today as north winds of 20 to 30 km/h gradually ease. The seasonably cool weather will at least come with sunny skies.

The weather will turn this evening as a low pressure system building into the Prairies pushes cloud over into the region. The cloud cover will help keep temperatures warmer tonight, with lows staying on the warm side of -20 °C before beginning to warm overnight. A warm front will push into the region overnight, bringing some light snow into the region.

Heading through the weekend, a couple waves of light snow will move through Winnipeg with clouds and flurries between them. Temperatures will warm to a high near -5 °C on Saturday as this system pushes the Arctic front back north of the region , then drop to around -10 °C on Saturday night and hover around that mark on Sunday. The region will see southeast winds up to 30 gusting 50 km/h on Saturday ease to light overnight.

While the system moving through the Prairies this weekend will bring a total of 10 to 20 cm of snow to many areas west and north of Winnipeg, the Red River Valley will likely only see 5 to 10 cm of snow by the time it tapers off later on Sunday.

This system will push the Arctic cold front back south through the region on Sunday, bringing moderate northwest winds and colder temperatures. Skies will begin to clear on Sunday night with temperatures heading back down to -20 °C.

Long Range Outlook

Colder weather will settle into the region next week with daytime highs in the -20 to -15 °C for much of the week. A bit of moderation is possible mid-week as a system crossing the northern United States may spread some cloud and light snow into the region as it passes to the south. Cold weather will likely return for the end of thew eek as well with daytime highs possibly dipping into the -20s.

Today’s seasonal daytime high in Winnipeg is -11 °C while the seasonal overnight low is -22 °C.

Warming up in Winnipeg, but Colder Temperatures Lurk Nearby

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Temperatures are warming up in Winnipeg, but a battle between warm and cold air is setting up over the province.

RDPS 2m Temperature Forecast valid 06Z Saturday January 25, 2025
A cold front will sweep through southern Manitoba on Friday night, bringing gusty northwest winds and some blowing snow.

To end the work week, a warm front will push through the Winnipeg area this morning. This front will bring a couple centimetres of light snow and moderate southerly winds as it pushes through. The snow will ease midday behind the front with winds shifting to the west. Temperatures will climb to a high near -2 °C this afternoon.

More snow will move into the region this evening, driven by a cold front following the warm front through the province. Another couple centimetres of snow will fall along with northwest winds up to 40 gusting 60 km/h. These winds will send temperatures back down into the mid-minus teens tonight and bring some blowing snow to the region.

Saturday will bring cooler, near-seasonal temperatures back to the region with a high just under -10 °C. Northwest winds will continue through the day at around 30 gusting 50 km/h, then ease off in the evening. A few flurries will be possible in the morning, then skies will clear. Another warm front will push into the region overnight, warming temperatures from a low in the mid-minus teens up to around -10 °C by Sunday morning.

On Sunday, a southwesterly breeze will bring mixed skies as temperatures climb into the -5 to 0 °C range. Temperatures will continue to warm towards the freezing mark on Sunday night as westerly winds of 20 to 30 km/h continue.

Long Range Outlook

Heading into next week, long-range forecasts show mild conditions for Winnipeg with daytime highs regularly near the freezing mark. There’s some uncertainty, though, as to whether the warmth will be able to stay in place over the region.

RDPS 2m Temperature Forecast valid 21Z Monday January 27, 2025
A sharp temperature gradient will set up over Manitoba next week, with above-freezing highs and the south and Arctic cold in the north.

The Polar Vortex is forecast to dip southeast into eastern Canada, and a strong temperature gradient will likely set up across Manitoba as a result. Daytime highs could reach above freezing over parts of southern Manitoba while temperatures into the -20s and -30s will be possible over northern Manitoba. With such a strong temperature gradient in place over the province, minor changes in front location could result in large swings in expected temperatures.

It will likely be a mild week next week, but minor features could also result in brief outbreaks of rather cold temperatures later in the week.

Today’s seasonal daytime high in Winnipeg is -12 °C while the seasonal overnight low is -23 °C.

Bitter Cold Slowly Loosens Its Grip on Southern Manitoba

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Brisk southerly winds will move through southern Manitoba today as the bitter cold eases across the region.

RDPS 2m Temperature Forecast valid 15Z Tuesday January 21, 2025
Moderate southerly winds will develop in the cold temperatures over the Red River Valley this morning.

It’s a cold start to the day, but a low pressure system dropping into the region from northern Saskatchewan is slowly dragging some milder temperatures back towards the region. It will push a warm front towards the region this morning, bringing light snow to the Red River Valley alongside strengthening southerly winds.

Those winds will climb to 40 gusting 60 km/h hour this morning. Combined with the falling snow, the recent cold, and the ice crystals that fell across the region over the weekend, it’s likely that we’ll see widespread blowing snow through the Red River Valley with some near-blizzard conditions possible on area highways running west-east.

Those southerly winds will keep wind chill values locked into the -30s despite the temperature warming into the -20 to -15 °C range.

As the low moves into southern Manitoba this afternoon, the winds will ease as the light snow mostly pushes out of the region. Some lingering flurries will be possible into the evening as temperatures reach as high as around -15 °C.

The low will exit the region overnight, bringing northerly winds back that usher in another push of Arctic air. Temperatures will dip close to -20 °C on Tuesday night under clearing skies. Temperatures will only recover a few degrees on Wednesday with breezy northwest winds around 30 gusting 50 km/h. Some local blowing snow is likely in the areas surrounding Winnipeg and skies should be partly cloudy to mixed.

Temperatures will head back into the -30 to -25 °C range on Wednesday night, but easing winds should keep wind chill values to the mid-minus 30s or so.

Thursday will be a cool day with temperatures returning to a high in the low minus teens under sunny skies.

Long Range Outlook

On Friday, a low pressure system moving through the southern Arctic will push a much broader swath of milder temperatures across the Prairies. For Winnipeg, this will mean temperatures won’t drop much on Thursday night as southerly winds up to 30 gusting 50 km/h redevelop through the Red River Valley.

On Friday, more cloud and light snow will move through the region as temperatures warm back up into the low minus single digits.

The weekend should bring pleasant winter weather with near-seasonal temperatures across the Red River Valley with a couple chances of light snow.

Looking ahead to the longer-range trends, it looks like January should wrap up trending on the milder side, though early February could bring another outbreak of bitterly cold air. There are no major snowfall events in the short or medium-range outlook for the region.

Today’s seasonal daytime high in Winnipeg is -13 °C while the seasonal overnight low is -23 °C.

Alberta Clipper Plunges Winnipeg Into Bitter Cold

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An Alberta clipper exiting the province will bring strong to severe north winds and blizzard conditions to the Red River Valley. Behind this system, strong northerly winds will drive a massive outbreak of Arctic air through region, sending Winnipeg into the deep freeze.

Strong northerly winds in the Red River Valley will drive bitterly cold Arctic air southwards into the region.

Temperatures in the Winnipeg area will plunge from close to freezing early this morning into the -15 to -20 °C range this afternoon, driven by northerly winds blasting through the region. A cold front will sweep through the Red River Valley early this morning, ushering in northwest winds that will strengthen to as high as 60 gusting 90 km/h. Combined with flurries moving through the region, these winds will likely produce blizzard conditions across much of the Red River Valley, especially in areas west of Winnipeg. The Elie-Portage la Prairie corridor of the Trans-Canada Highway will likely be exceptionally hazardous and very well could close today.

In Winnipeg, visibilities may not deteriorate as much as areas outside the city as the recent warm weather and limited new snow may limit the ability for substantial blowing snow development.

Conditions will begin to improve this evening. Winds will ease to 30 gusting 50 km/h after the sun goes down, bringing an end to most of the blowing snow across the region. Temperatures will drop down into the mid-minus 20s as skies clear with wind chills in the mid-minus 30s.

The weekend will be dominated by a strong Arctic high building into the Prairies. Daytime highs will likely sit in the -25 to -20 °C range with overnight lows dropping towards -30 °C. Skies will be clear through the weekend as the northwest winds gradually shift towards the west and weaken. Wind chills will dip down into the -35 to -40 range at night and will bring a chance for extreme cold warnings across the region at some point over the weekend.

Long Range Outlook

The bitter cold will stay entrenched over the region through the first half of next week. Several long-range weather models show warmer weather arriving in the region mid-week with a chance for some accumulating snow.

Stay safe today; if you must travel on area highways, make sure you have a winter survival kit in your car in case of an emergency. Make sure to cover up if you need to spend time outside this weekend as a northwest wind will be persistent over the coming days.

And just as a final note, we hope the start of 2025 finds you well. Life has kept me extremely busy over the last 6 weeks with family events, Christmas, and moving for a renovation. That didn’t leave much time (or energy) for writing which is why the site went quiet for a while. Things are starting to calm down, so we hope to get back into the rhythm of regular writing soon!

Today’s seasonal daytime high in Winnipeg is -13 °C while the seasonal overnight low is -24 °C.