310 FXUS63 KMPX 100753 AFDMPXArea Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Twin Cities/Chanhassen MN 253 AM CDT Fri Oct 10 2025
.KEY MESSAGES...
- Elevated fire weather conditions possible this afternoon.
- Rain likely Sunday with breezy winds.
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.DISCUSSION... Issued at 252 AM CDT Fri Oct 10 2025
A couple of isolated showers and storms have developed in southeastern MN and western WI early this morning ahead of a cold front. This activity will move east over the next couple of hours, potentially affecting EAU where we have 30-40% PoPs. Clear skies over MN will continue to spread east following this activity, allowing for a sunny Friday. Breezier northwesterly flow proceeding the cold front will cool us slightly to end the week with mid to upper 60s expected for highs (Friday and Saturday). Elevated fire weather conditions are still possible this afternoon, mainly across southern and south-central MN. Here, minimum RHs will fall into the lower 30s and, combined with existing drier vegetation, could allow for a couple of hours of elevated fire potential. Lows Friday night will get a little chilly with mid 30s to lower 40s expected. Areas with the greatest chances for frost will be near JMR and in our northern WI counties. Cloud cover will increase from the west Saturday into Saturday night as an upper-level trough and jetstreak swing through the Rockies and into the Northern High Plains. A strong LLJ ahead of the trough will allow for WAA over the Northern Plains into Sunday, causing Sunday`s highs to warm into the upper 60s to even upper 70s in southwestern MN. However, Sunday is not expected to be very nice as southerly winds will be quite strong with gusts to 25-35 MPH. Have slightly increased winds for our region using a blend of the NBM and NBM 90th percentile. Additionally, rain showers are expected to develop within the WAA and upper-level diffluence, slowly moving west to east across the CWA Saturday night through Sunday night. Rainfall totals shouldn`t be too significant but the Grand Ensemble shows the entire area receiving at least 0.1-0.2". Western MN currently has the potential to see the most rain with the 75th percentile of the Grand Ensemble climbing to near 0.8".
As the trough axis swings through the Upper Midwest earlier Monday, a strong cold front will move in tandem, ending precipitation and cooling us to start the work week. Western and central MN will see highs dip into the mid to upper 50s for Monday while the entire CWA should see these values for Tuesday. Monday night could be particularly cool where lows are currently forecast fall to near freezing over central MN. Temperatures look to moderate, though, as we head towards mid-next week. Zonal upper-level flow to even slight ridging becomes favored over the central CONUS, especially as we get later in the week. Southwesterly upper-level flow downstream of a positively-tilted trough over the west coast will allow for WAA into the central CONUS allowing the aforementioned ridge to build. This flow should also advect greater moisture into the region such that forecast models develop periods of QPF across the Upper Midwest after Wednesday. Though, the spread in the models has just resulted in a smearing 20-40% PoPs Wednesday night through next Friday. We`ll have to wait a few more forecast cycles to gain more confidence in our next good chance of rainfall for the latter half of next week.
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.AVIATION /06Z TAFS THROUGH 06Z SATURDAY/... Issued at 1145 PM CDT Thu Oct 9 2025
Redevelopment of isolated showers or a thunderstorm is possible over western WI early this morning. However, confidence has decreased in this scenario such that TEMPOs at RNH and EAU have been downgraded to PROB30s. If a thunderstorm does occur, a brief reduction to MVFR visibilities is expected. Afterwards, skies clear and VFR expected the remainder of the period. With the cold front from central to southwest MN and moving east, southerly winds ahead of the front will continue to switch to north-northwesterly once the frontal passage occurs. Winds will increase during late Friday morning with gusts reaching near 20 knots. Winds slow to 5 knots or less Friday evening and turn north/northeasterly.
KMSP...Winds will flip from southerly to northwesterly between 11-13Z. Light northeasterly winds are expected early Saturday morning.
/OUTLOOK FOR KMSP/ SAT...VFR. Wind SE 5-10 kts. SUN...MVFR/-SHRA likely. Wind SE 15-20G30kts. MON...VFR. Wind NW 10G20kts.
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.MPX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... MN...None. WI...None.
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DISCUSSION...CTG AVIATION...CTG
NWS MPX Office Area Forecast Discussion