Updraft® - Minnesota Weather News

Dense fog advisories cover parts of 15 states

Snow cover disappearing around the Twin Cities

Dense fog advisory
Dense fog advisory
Twin Cities National Weather Service office

Welcome to London. Or Seattle.

It’s another symptom of our record warm super El Niño winter.

Thick fog will blanket most of southern Minnesota into Friday morning, and we’re just the tip of the iceberg. Dense fog advisories cover parts of 15 states running from Minnesota south to Texas and east to New York.

Fog advisories
Fog advisories
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Here are the details on the advisory for central and southern Minnesota including the Twin Cities.

Including the cities of Albert Lea, Osceola, Chaska, Owatonna, Montevideo, Stillwater, Sauk Rapids, Red Wing, Le Sueur, Faribault, Blaine, St Cloud, Rice Lake, Minneapolis, Menomonie, Little Falls, Victoria, Long Prairie, Gaylord, Chanhassen, Hutchinson, Olivia, Ladysmith, Princeton, River Falls, Chippewa Falls, Alexandria, Willmar, Center City, St Peter, Litchfield, St James, Granite Falls, Hastings, Mankato, New Ulm, Blue Earth, Hudson, Eau Claire, Redwood Falls, Fairmont, Elk River, Durand, Monticello, Glenwood, Waseca, Benson, Morris, St Paul, Cambridge, Shakopee, Mora, and Madison

219 PM CST Thu Jan 25 2024

...DENSE FOG ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 9 PM THIS EVENING TO 10 AM CST FRIDAY...

* WHAT...Visibility one quarter mile or less in dense fog.

* WHERE...Portions of central, east central, south central, southeast, southwest, and west central Minnesota and northwest and west central Wisconsin.

* WHEN...From 9 PM this evening to 10 AM CST Friday.

* IMPACTS...Low visibility could make driving conditions hazardous.

* ADDITIONAL DETAILS...Visibility will slowly improve tomorrow morning however, fog will still be present throughout much of Friday, as has been the case the last few days. Temperatures near freezing will create slippery travel conditions, especially during the early morning.

Freezing north

Much of the Twin Cities may hover just above freezing again overnight into Friday morning. But areas just north and west could see more freezing fog and drizzle overnight making roads icy again.

Forecast low temperatures Friday morning
Forecast low temperatures Friday morning
NOAA

Highs Friday will approach 40 degrees in the Twin Cities.

Forecast high temperatures Friday
Forecast high temperatures Friday
NOAA

Snow cover going

Our mild temperatures and drizzle have done a number on snow cover around the Twin Cities. There‘s just a trace of snow on the ground now here at the Weather Lab and at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport.

Here are some select snow depth readings Thursday from around Minnesota:

  • Fargo-Moorhead, 1 inch

  • St. Cloud, 2 inches

  • Rochester, 4 inches

  • Duluth, 5 inches

  • Worthington, 9 inches

Here’s the difference in snow cover between Wednesday and Thursday at the Weather Lab.

A trace of snow
Just a trace of snow at the Weather Lab in the southwest Twin Cities on Wednesday.
Paul Huttner | MPR News
Lots of grass at the Weather Lab
Lots of grass at the Weather Lab on Thursday.
Paul Huttner | MPR News

Even warmer next week

Our well-advertised warmup next week is still on track. High temperatures in the upper 40s to around 50 degrees still look likely later next week into the first weekend of February.

Forecast high temperatures Friday
Forecast high temperatures Friday
NOAA

Record highs in the Twin Cities are between 48 and 51 degrees late next week. And we’ll probably set some overnight record-high minimum temperatures later next week.

What winter?

Stay tuned.