Tag: Windy

Seasonal Temperatures Return For The Weekend

Brad Leave a comment

Winnipeg will see another cool day before seasonal temperatures return on Saturday and stick around through the weekend and beyond. Overall the upcoming weather forecast could be described as "fairly boring" with no significant weather events expected in the next 5-7 days.

Winnipeg will see mainly cloudy skies today as a weak upper-level disturbance moves across the province. With all the cloud and a weak northerly wind, below-normal temperatures will persist with a high temperature of just 7°C. The afternoon will bring a slight chance of some shower activity, but it is overall expected to be quite light and may remain north of the Winnipeg. Temperatures will be chilly tonight as temperatures dip to +2°C under cloudy skies.

Saturday will be another cloudy day in Winnipeg and mark the start of the next weather system that, while not directly impacting us, will set the stage for the weather over the region for the next few days. A fairly potent low pressure system will begin building out of Montana into South Dakota, spreading cloud and rain through North Dakota towards the Canadian border. A strong deformation zone should set up just south of the border, keeping the precipitation States-side. In Manitoba, this system will produce primarily cloud and wind. As mentioned, we expect mainly cloudy skies for Winnipeg, and much of the remainder of Southern Manitoba, on Saturday. The wind will pick up out of the northeast, strengthening to about 30km/h here in Winnipeg, with values closer to 40 gusting 60 km/h over southwestern Manitoba.

Some of the cloud will begin to slump to the south on Saturday night as temperatures drop to the -1°C mark.

GDPS Surface Wind Forecast valid 18Z Sunday April 24, 2016
A strong low pressure system (L) in South Dakota will bring windy conditions to the Red River Valley on Sunday.

Sunday will bring partly cloudy skies for Winnipeg as the main cloud shield slumps to the international border.[1] Temperatures will continue near seasonal values with a high of 10°C. Unfortunately, it will feel quite chilly as a brisk northeasterly wind approaching 40km/h develops over the Red River Valley. Temperatures will dip down to the freezing mark on Sunday night once again with winds tapering off.

A quick glance ahead into next week shows pretty much more of the same; some sun, some cloud, and temperatures at or just below seasonal. Not much is expected precipitation wise until a system comes through in the second half of the week and brings the potential for some rain to the region.

Winnipeg’s seasonal daytime high is currently 13°C while the seasonal overnight low is 0°C.

  1. This means that for areas in the southern Red River Valley, skies will likely be more mixed-to-cloudy.  ↩

Cool Weather With A Windy Weekend

Brad Leave a comment

The cool weather will continue through the next few days with daytime highs struggling near 5°C below seasonal for early April. Heading into the weekend, the wind will be the biggest story as a low pressure system brings strong southerly winds to the region on Saturday and strong northerly winds on Sunday.

A ridge of high pressure situated over the province will bring cool temperatures, clear skies and light winds to Southern Manitoba today. In Winnipeg & the Red River Valley, temperatures will climb to a high near -4°C, some 12°C below seasonal values for this time of year. Tonight will be a cool night with overnight lows dipping below -10°C. Through the second half of the night, cloud cover ahead of an approaching low pressure system will begin spilling into Western Manitoba and towards the Red River Valley.

Windy Saturday

Saturday’s weather will be dominated by a fairly strong low pressure system moving across the province. The primary story for Winnipeg & the Red River Valley will be the strong winds associated with it.

RDPS 10m Wind valid 21Z April 9, 2016
Strong southerly winds (pink) will be in place over Southern Manitoba on Saturday.

Beginning mid-day on Saturday, strong southerly winds will develop over the Red River Valley southwards into the Dakotas. Winds will reach their peak by mid-afternoon with sustained winds of 50-60km/h with gusts up to 80km/h. The winds will then diminish in the evening as the low pressure centre moves over the region.

There will be a chance of some shower or flurry activity with this system on Saturday, but at this point it looks like a vast majority of the precipitation will remain to the north, primarily falling through Parkland Manitoba eastwards through the Interlake.

Temperatures will climb to around +2°C during the day under mainly cloudy skies.

Flurries Move in on Saturday Night Alongside Strong Northerlies

With the passage of the low occurring mainly on Saturday night, temperatures will remain relatively warm; by early Sunday morning the temperature is expected to dip to just -2°C. It will begin to feel a lot colder, however, as the low passes to the east and strong northwesterly winds begin moving in behind the system.

GDPS 10m Wind valid 18Z April 10, 2016
Strong northwesterly winds (pink) will be in place over Southern Manitoba on Sunday.

Sunday will be another cloudy day with decent chance of some flurry or light snow activity as temperatures climb to a high of +1°C. Winds will strengthen out of the northwest to 40-50km/h with gusts up to 60km/h. The wind ease to 30km/h or so on Sunday night as temperatures dip to -8°C for a low.

Long Range: Heading Into A Warming Trend

NAEFS 8-14 Day Temperature Anomaly Forecast — Valid April 15-22, 2016
NAEFS 8-14 Day Temperature Anomaly Forecast — Valid April 15-22, 2016

After a lengthy stretch of below-normal temperatures, it’s beginning to look like we’ll finally see a taste of spring in the second half of next week as an upper-level ridge begins shifting eastwards and spreading milder air into Manitoba. Daytime highs of will climb towards 10°C by the end of next week. No significant precipitation is expected through the next 4-8 days at the moment.

Winnipeg’s seasonal daytime high is currently 8°C while the seasonal overnight low is -4°C.

Messy Winter Weather Continues

Brad Leave a comment

Winnipeg hasn’t see the last of the snow quite yet; after a mix of snow and rain yesterday, another mess of wintery weather is on the way later today as a low pressure system slumps through the province from the northwest. Afterwards, the Red River Valley will be left with generally cool weather with daytime highs below seasonal values.

Winnipeg will see but a brief reprieve from yesterday’s snowy & slushy weather before another low pressure system pushes into the province from Northern Saskatchewan and brings another shot of rain and snow to Southern Manitoba. Before that wet and messy weather moves in, Winnipeg will be stuck under mostly cloudy skies with light winds. Temperatures will be below normal today with daytime highs near +3°C.

RDPS 6hr. QPF valid 06Z April 7, 2016
The RDPS shows an area of precipitation moving across the Red River Valley on Wednesday evening

By late this afternoon, a mix of rain and snow will begin working its way into the Red River Valley from the northwest. This mix of precipitation will likely continue into the evening before changing over to just snow overnight as temperatures dip to a low near -3°C.

As the low pressure system passes to the east of the Red River Valley overnight, stronger northwesterly winds will develop with sustained winds of 30-40km/h and gusts to around 50km/h.

Thursday will bring more cloud to the region with the gusty northwesterly winds continuing throughout the day, sustained by a ridge of high pressure building in from the north. There will be a chance of light flurry activity throughout much of the day, but no significant accumulations are expected. The daytime high will be a bit cooler than Wednesday at +1 or +2°C, but as the ridge moves it brings much cooler air. It will be noticeable on Thursday night as the winds drop off and Winnipeg heads to a low near -10°C.

The sun should finally make an appearance on Friday as the weather over Southern Manitoba is dominated by a ridge of high pressure. This will result mainly sunny skies with light winds and very cool daytime highs[1] in the low minus single digits. Friday night will continue to be cold with an overnight low in the minus teens.

Long Range

Looking ahead to to the weekend and beyond, it appears that the generally cool temperatures will stick around until at least the middle of next week before a return to more seasonal values.

CPC 6-10 Day Temperature Anomaly Forecast valid April 11-15, 2016
The CPC is forecast below-normal temperatures for Southern Manitoba in the 6-10 day time period

The weekend looks like the most "active" period in the longer-range forecast as another significant low pressure system moves across the Prairies. Strong southerly winds will develop ahead of the low as it moves towards Manitoba through the day on Saturday[2], and then as they begin to diminish another mix of rain and snow will spread across portions of central and southern Manitoba. There’s uncertainty as to how much Winnipeg will see, but best indications are that most should stay north of the city.

Otherwise, the weather looks cool and calm through the first half of next week.

Winnipeg’s seasonal daytime high is currently 7°C while the seasonal overnight low is -4°C.

  1. Friday’s daytime high will be nearly 15°C below seasonal values!  ↩
  2. Sustained winds of 50 km/h are possible on Saturday with gusts as high as 70 km/h.  ↩
NAM Forecast Reflectivity w/Precipitation Type – 21Z April 5, 2016

Winter Ain’t Over Yet

Scott Leave a comment

Another bout of ugly winter weather is on the way this week as two back-to-back systems bring more snow to southern Manitoba.

Today will be one of the nicer days this week, although that’s not saying much. We should see mainly sunny skies and temperatures just below the freezing mark, which is almost 10C below normal for this time of year. Winds will be light as we’ll be stuck under a surface high pressure system.

A strong low pressure system will bring snow to southern Manitoba on Tuesday
A strong low pressure system will bring snow to southern Manitoba on Tuesday

The weather will begin to turn ugly early on Tuesday morning as a low pressure system pushes snow into southern Manitoba. A band of moderate to heavy snow is expected on Tuesday morning as the system initially pushes into the region. This band will likely persist for only a few hours before snow rates become lighter. However, light snow is expected to continue off and on for most of Tuesday, pushing total snow accumulations into the 5-10 cm by the time this system moves out late on Tuesday. Gusty north winds are expected to develop on Tuesday night, causing poor visibility in open areas.

Wednesday will see yet another low pressure system bring additional snow to southern Manitoba. This round of snow is expected to push in later in the day, bringing another 2-6 cm by Thursday morning. It’s a bit early to be very confident in the amount of snowfall this system will bring, so check back for updates as the week progresses.

Long Range

The long range forecast doesn’t show any indication of improving weather for the next while. Conditions are generally expected to remain at or below normal for most of the first half of April. More snow isn’t out of the question either, so don’t take off those snow tires just yet!