Heavy snow is making Sunday morning travel difficult; updated snow forecast

Our winter snowstorm is here, and it’ll dump heavy snow this morning over much of southern Minnesota , the Twin Cities metro area and portions of western Wisconsin. You may even hear thunder at times during the most intense snow.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s North American Mesoscale forecast model shows the potential snow pattern this Sunday morning through Sunday afternoon:

Here is an updated snow-total forecast for this storm, which includes the snow that fell in some areas overnight:

Notice the swath of 8 to 12 inch snow amounts that is forecast across southern Minnesota and portions of Wisconsin. Travel will be slow this morning due to low visibilities and snow-covered roads.

Winter storm warnings have been expanded to include most of the Twin Cities metro area and they remain in effect for most of southern Minnesota and much of western Wisconsin:

Here’s a snowstorm discussion from the NWS:

URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE National Weather Service Twin Cities/Chanhassen MN 209 AM CST Sun Feb 9 2020 ...HEAVY SNOW EXPECTED TO CONTINUE THROUGH THE MORNING FOR AREAS SOUTH OF A LINE FROM MADISON TO THE TWIN CITIES TO EAU CLAIRE... ...SNOW TOTALS WILL DROP OFF RAPIDLY NORTH OF THAT LINE... .A Winter Storm Warning is in effect through about midday for much of southern Minnesota into Wisconsin. The warning is in effect along and south of a line from Madison, to the Twin Cities, to Eau Claire. Total snowfall amounts of 6 to 12 inches are expected in the warning area, with the best chance for a foot in a corridor from Canby, to Redwood Falls, to Mankato, to Rochester. Meanwhile, farther to the north, a Winter Weather Advisory is in effect north of the Winter Storm Warning up to a line from Benson, to Monticello, to Balsam Lake. The advisory includes the northern Twin Cities suburbs. Totals in this area will vary from 2 to 4 inches. Snowfall rates could reach 1 to 2 inches per hour in the warning area, with even a few thunderstorms possible in the heaviest snow bands as has been noted across southwestern Minnesota early this morning.

The winter storm warning continues until noon in the Twin Cities metro area. Here’s the forecast for Hennepin, Ramsey and Washington counties:

Hennepin-Ramsey-Washington- Including the cities of Minneapolis, St Paul, and Stillwater 209 AM CST Sun Feb 9 2020 ...WINTER STORM WARNING IN EFFECT UNTIL NOON CST TODAY... * WHAT...Heavy snow. Total snow accumulations of 3 to 7 inches. * WHERE...Hennepin, Ramsey and Washington Counties. * WHEN...Until noon CST today. * IMPACTS...Plan on slippery road conditions. * ADDITIONAL DETAILS...There will be a sharp gradient of snowfall totals ranging from around 3 inches north of I-694, to 6 or 7 inches along and south of I-494. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... If you must travel, keep an extra flashlight, food, and water in your vehicle in case of an emergency. The latest road conditions for the state you are calling from can be obtained by calling 5 1 1.

The highest snow totals of 6 or 7 inches will be in the southern parts of those counties, with the lowest snow totals in the far northern parts of the three counties.. Parts of Carver, Scott and Dakota county could see snow totals of 8 to 10 inches.

You can hear updated weather information on the MPR network, and you’ll see updated weather info on the MPR News live weather blog.

Updates on the winter storm will be posted by the NWS offices in the Twin Cities, La Crosse and Sioux Falls.

The Minnesota Department of Transportation will have reports on road conditions. Wisconsin road conditions can be found here.

Programming note

You can hear my live weather updates on MPR News at 7:35 a.m., 9:35 a.m. and 4:35 p.m. each Saturday and Sunday.