Sunrise 6:03 AM   Sunset 8:15 PM Moonrise 11:50 PM   Moonset 6:48 AM

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FXUS63 KMPX 270848 AFDMPX

Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Twin Cities/Chanhassen MN 348 AM CDT Sat Apr 27 2024

KEY MESSAGES

- Today will be dry, but a cool rainy day is on tap for Sunday.

- Another round of showers and thunderstorms likely on Tuesday, with a few stronger storms possible.

- Rest of next week looks generally dry with seasonable temperatures.

DISCUSSION
Issued at 344 AM CDT Sat Apr 27 2024

Surface low this morning is moving across southern MN and is on its way to central Lake Superior by the afternoon. A PV boot has rotated around the surface low. PVA ahead of this PV anomaly is driving the shield of rain across central MN early this morning, but subsidence and dry mid level air behind the leading edge of the PV anomaly has quickly cut off the precip over southern MN.
Given the track of the low, we're still on tap for a dry Saturday as the low and PV anomaly move northeast of the MPX area. We'll be on the cool side of any front, which necessitated another downward nudge on highs today. We went closer to the CONSraw guidance, which came in between the 25th and 50th NBM percentile with the cloudy and post frontal airmass expected.

For the Sunday system, we've seen a slower trend with this system.
As a result, we reduced PoPs quite a bit for tonight, then took a good hit out of highs for Sunday. The low now looks to remain to our south through the day on Sunday, with Sunday looking rather raw now, with temperatures struggling to hit just 50 along and north of a line front Redwood Falls, to the Twin Cities and Ladysmith with a steady rain expected as well. Great sleeping weather if you happen to be working the overnight shift! As for the severe risk, given the slower and further southeast track of the surface low expected, severe chances in the MPX area are looking pretty low, with the better severe risk on Sunday across northeast Iowa toward La Crosse.
Instead, it will be another day on the cool side of the front, with maybe an isolated storm being possible in our widespread rain.

We dry out and have another cool, post frontal day on Monday, but that will be short-lived. Models have really started to round into agreement on our next system coming in on Tuesday. This shortwave is looking stronger, with the exit region of a jet streak moving in as well to aid in the development of showers and thunderstorms. The NBM has bumped PoPs up to the likely category. The forcing will line up with peak heating, so we'll take on a more convective nature to the activity on Tuesday. Instability looks to be lacking to drive a significant severe threat, but given the wind profiles, this looks to be an environment that could support a few marginally severe storms.

For the rest of the week, we'll have a WSW jet overhead with a positively tilted trough extending from an h5 low in northwest Ontario back toward eastern MT. This will keep temperatures seasonable for the rest of the period. It is also one where there's little agreement in the ensembles on any periods that will be completely dry. This results in the endless PoPs we have in the 20s after Tuesday. Though it should be said, our climatology for PoPs this time of year is up in the mid 30s (ie. any day during the last week of April has seen measurable precip 35% of the time), so these low PoPs are actually saying our chances for rain are below normal for the rest of the period after Tuesday. Given the flow, we'll probably manage to squeeze a little precip out of any passing wave in the jet stream, though at this point, there is little agreement on when we may see one of those passing waves, so you get a forecast that gives the impression it will be wetter than it will be in reality.

AVIATION /06Z TAFS THROUGH 06Z SUNDAY/
Issued at 1248 AM CDT Sat Apr 27 2024

Surface low over SW MN now will be heading for north central WI through the morning. The last round of rain with this system is already lifting through the MKT area. It will follow the low north and each site will be dry for the rest of Saturday once this batch of showers moves through. With the low moving overhead, cigs are a bit tricky. We'll likely see LIFR conditions immediately within and to the north of west of the low, with a wedge of drier air to the east of the low trying to clear things out. MKT/MSP/RNH/EAU would be in line for seeing a brief period of VFR cigs as the low passes to the west of each site, though satellite trends have shown this area of clearing filling back in across northern IA, so it's hard to say if we'll see much relief from the IFR cigs this morning. As the low lifts north of the area, we will see cigs improve into the top half of the MVFR range, with a brief period of VFR cigs possible this evening before cigs fill back in ahead of our next low for Sunday.

KMSP...Surface low will pass between MSP and STC overnight, which means wind directions will swing through the south on their way over the the west for Saturday. Expect rain to be done at MSP by 10z. We could see some showers prior to 12z Sunday, but rain really looks to hold off until Sunday morning.

/OUTLOOK FOR KMSP/ SUN...MVFR/-RA, chance IFR/TS. Wind ENE 15-20G25-30 kts.
MON...MVFR/-SHRA early, then VFR. Wind WSW 15-20G30 kts.
TUE...Mainly VFR. Chance MVFR/-SHRA. Wind SW 10-15G20-25 kts.

MPX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES
MN...None.
WI...None.

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