Finally: First 70s, possibly 80s in sight for much of Minnesota?

You knew how this would end, Minnesota. And now it looks like we could go from wind-driven snow to 70smand even possibly 80sm in less than a week.

For now, the Spring of our Discontent continues to hammer us with wind, rain, and snow at times through this weekend. MPR meteorologist Ron Trenda laid out the weekend forecast in detail here.

So I want to focus on some much warmer weather news that’s emerging on the forecast models today. And to be honest, I’m as tired of writing about our angry April weather as you are looking out the window.

Pattern change

Meteorologists watch the upper air jet stream pattern about 18,000 feet above ground level for strong clues about temperature patterns. Our current upper air pattern shows the stubborn wintry cold pool of a wound-up low-pressure storm plowing through the Upper Midwest.

But take a look at the upper air pattern evolution by next Friday, April 22. See the bump with warmer tones across the Upper Midwest?

That’s a building ridge of high pressure that will bring much warmer air to our region as we move into the weekend of April 23-24.

70s to 80s?

Forecast models are responding to the change. NOAA’s GFS model is cranking out highs in the 70s across our region by next Saturday, April 23.

And the European model is pushing it even further. Check out the air mass it produces with high in the 80s over much of Minnesota, with 90s to the southwest for next Saturday, April 23.

It’s still too early to express high confidence in the precise degree of warming next weekend. But confidence for a much warmer temperature pattern is growing with each passing forecast model run.

Warmer outlooks

NOAA’s latest 8 to 14-day temperature outlook reflects the warming trend.

And the latest 3-month outlook suggests we may be leaning toward a milder than average temperature pattern as we move through spring into early summer.

So this could be the change many of us have been waiting for.

Stay tuned.