After This Week’s 2-Day Winter, Another Warmup Is On the Way for Southern Minnesota

We interrupt this non-existent winter to bring you two days of snow and cold. Had this been an actual winter, you would have been shoveling and shivering since November. We now return you to your never-ending spring thaw.

Yep, that's about it in a nutshell. After Wednesday night's snow and a colder Thursday and Friday, we'll be right back into our comfortable, warmer than normal pattern that has dominated the winter of 2023-24.

NOAA's 8 to 14 day outlook has southern Minnesota in the bullseye for the highest probability for above normal temperatures through the end of February.

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The average high in southern Minnesota for the second half of February is around 29.

The Weather Channel's 14-Day Forecast for Owatonna

• FRI 2/16: Mostly sunny, High 18.
• SAT 2/17: Partly cloudy, High 32.
• SUN 2/18: Sunny, High 35.
• MON 2/19: Partly cloudy, High 44.
• TUE 2/20: Partly cloudy, High 47.
• WED 2/21: Partly cloudy, High 48.
• THU 2/22: Partly cloudy, High 37.
• FRI 2/23: Partly cloudy, High 37.
• SAT 2/24: Mostly sunny, High 37.
• SUN 2/25: Mostly sunny, High 49.
• MON 2/26: Rain/snow, High 51.⬅️❗
• TUE 2/27: Partly cloudy, High 53.⬅️❗
• WED 2/28: Partly cloudy, High 55.⬅️❗
• THU 2/29: Partly cloudy, High 56.⬅️❗

We have not seen a winter like this one in 145 years. 1877-1878 was the only other time on record when winter in Minnesota was so nonexistent. Meteorological winter runs from December 1st through the end of February, which means we're only 15 days away from the start of meteorological spring.

According to Minnesota's State Climatology Office, most of the state has had less that 25% of normal snowfall. In addition to the lack of snow, temperature records have been breaking left and right this winter.

Most areas in the state have seen 20-55 days since December 1st with no snow on the ground.

Rochester has seen 10 days with highs above 50 so far this winter, and the Twin Cities have had a dozen (that's a new record too). Both Rochester and the Twin Cities have set 6 new record high temps, and Rochester has set 5 new record high overnight lows, while the Twin Cities did that 7 times.