124  
FXUS63 KMPX 171121  
AFDMPX  
 
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION  
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TWIN CITIES/CHANHASSEN MN  
621 AM CDT SAT MAY 17 2025  
   
KEY MESSAGES
 
 
- CLOUDY AND BREEZY AGAIN TODAY. AREAS OF FROST LIKELY IN WESTERN  
MINNESOTA TONIGHT.  
 
- COOLER TEMPERATURES CONTINUE INTO NEXT WEEK. NEXT CHANCE FOR  
RAIN ARRIVES MONDAY INTO TUESDAY.  
 

 
   
DISCUSSION
 
 
ISSUED AT 259 AM CDT SAT MAY 17 2025  
 
THE SWIRL OF A SYSTEM ON GOES 19 CONTINUES THIS MORNING AS OUR  
SYSTEM WILL BE MOVING OUT TODAY, WITH CONTINUED CLOUD COVER AND  
BREEZY WINDS UNTIL IT PUSHES INTO THE EASTERN GREAT LAKES LATER  
TONIGHT. THE PERSISTENT LIGHT SHOWERS TONIGHT ARE PUSHING INTO  
WESTERN WISCONSIN WITH DRY AIR FINALLY WRAPPING ENOUGH TO DRY THINGS  
OUT WEST OF THE TWIN CITIES AS OF AROUND 3AM, WITH EASTERN MN DRY BY  
6AM AND WESTERN WI BY LATER THIS AFTERNOON. THE FOCUS OF THE  
FORECAST TRANSITIONS FROM LIGHT SHOWERS TO LIKELY FROST TOMORROW  
NIGHT FOR AREAS OF CENTRAL AND WESTERN MINNESOTA WITH A WEDGE OF  
COOL AIR AT 850MB FOLLOWING THE DEPARTING SYSTEM AS OUR UPPER LEVEL  
FLOW TRANSITIONS TO WNW. SKIES WILL BE CLEARING LATER IN THE DAY AND  
WILL ALLOW FOR RAPIDLY COOLING TEMPERATURES DOWN INTO THE LOW TO MID  
30S IN WESTERN MINNESOTA TO NEAR 40 IN THE TWIN CITIES AND WESTERN  
WI. WE ARE FAR ENOUGH ALONG WHERE EVERYTHING IS GREEN AND GROWING,  
SUCH THAT SENSITIVE PLANTS SHOULD BE COVERED OR BROUGHT INSIDE TO  
PROTECT THEM FROM THE COLD ESPECIALLY GIVEN THE WARM TEMPERATURES  
OVER THE LAST WEEK TO 10 DAYS.  
 
THE COOLER AIR IN THE MID LEVELS RETREATS NORTHWARDS BY EARLY MONDAY  
AS WE TRANSITION TOWARDS OUR NEXT WEATHER SYSTEM ARRIVING LATER ON  
MONDAY INTO TUESDAY, WITH A DEVELOPING TROUGH AND SURFACE LOW  
EJECTING OVER THE ROCKIES BEFORE STALLING OVER WESTERN SD/NE. LOWER  
LEVEL FLOW OVER SOUTHERN MINNESOTA WILL TILT TOWARDS THE SOUTHEAST  
AS A WARM SECTOR LIKE ENVIRONMENT BEGINS TO FORM SOUTH OF A PSEUDO-  
STATIONARY FRONTAL BOUNDARY. THE MAIN DIFFERENCES BETWEEN ENSEMBLE  
GUIDANCE RIGHT NOW IS IN THE PLACEMENT OF SAID FRONT, WHICH IS GOING  
TO BE THE CUTOFF BETWEEN LITTLE TO NO RAINFALL NORTH OF THE FRONT  
AND THE PRODUCTION OF SCATTERED TO WIDESPREAD SHOWERS AND WEAK  
STORMS SOUTH OF THE FRONT. INSTABILITY IS SOMEWHAT LACKING IN  
FORECAST SOUNDINGS AND THERE IS NOT ENOUGH VEERING TO PRODUCE GOOD  
SHEAR SUCH THAT THUNDERSTORM POTENTIAL LOOKS FAIRLY LOW AND SOME  
RUMBLES OF THUNDER ARE THE EXPECTATION, ESPECIALLY AS THIS SYSTEM  
WILL BE MUCH COOLER COMPARED TO OUR PREVIOUS ONE. THE SHOWERS COULD  
PERSIST AS LONG AS EARLY WEDNESDAY IN SOUTHERN MINNESOTA BEFORE THE  
UPPER LEVEL LOW EJECTS INTO EASTERN CANADA LEAVING US WITH NORTHERLY  
FLOW AND DRYING AIR ONCE AGAIN.  
 
THERE ARE SOME HINTS AT A RETURN TO WARMER TEMPERATURES BY MEMORIAL  
DAY WEEKEND WITHIN MUCH OF THE GLOBAL GUIDANCE WITH WARMER 850MB  
TEMPERATURES DEVELOPING OVER THE CENTRAL ROCKIES AND MOVING TOWARDS  
THE REGION BY MEMORIAL DAY. FOR RIGHT NOW, ENSEMBLES SHOW A  
SIGNIFICANT SPREAD SUCH THAT CONFIDENCE IS LOW, HOWEVER THE UPPER  
LEVEL PATTERN LOOKS TO FAVOR WARMING BACK TO AT LEAST NORMAL IF NOT  
ABOVE NORMAL TEMPERATURES BY THE END OF THE MONTH.  
 

 
   
AVIATION /12Z TAFS THROUGH 12Z SUNDAY/
 
 
ISSUED AT 607 AM CDT SAT MAY 17 2025  
 
ADDED TEMPO GROUPS AT AXN AND STC FOR A FEW HOURS THIS MORNING  
AS PERIODS OF IFR CIGS LOOK POSSIBLE. THOUGH, ALL TERMINALS WILL  
LARGELY BE MVFR WITH LOW OVERCAST STRATUS PERSISTING THROUGH  
MOST OF TODAY. WENT A BIT MORE PESSIMISTIC FOR OUR EASTERN  
TERMINALS WITH THE MVFR STRATUS FAILING TO LIFT OR BREAK APART  
ENOUGH TO REACH VFR BY THE END OF THE TAF PERIOD. ACROSS  
WESTERN MN LIES MORE HOPE AS GREATER BREAKS IN THE CLOUDS SHOULD  
ALLOW FOR VFR BY TONIGHT. NORTHWESTERLY WINDS WILL BE BREEZY  
THIS MORNING INTO THE AFTERNOON. STRONGEST WINDS ARE EXPECTED IN  
WESTERN MN WHERE SUSTAINED VALUES OF NEAR 15 KNOTS AND GUSTS TO  
25 KNOTS ARE FORECAST. HOWEVER, WINDS GRADUALLY SLOW THIS  
AFTERNOON INTO THIS EVENING, FALLING TO NEAR 5 KNOTS AND  
BECOMING MORE NORTHERLY AFTER MIDNIGHT.  
 
KMSP...CIGS NEAR 1100 FEET SHOULD PERSIST UNTIL ABOUT 19Z WHERE  
THEY WILL THEN RISE TO 2000 FEET. HAVE OPTED TO HOLD ONTO MVFR  
UNTIL 08Z GIVEN LOW-LEVEL SATURATION IN FORECAST SOUNDINGS.  
NORTHWESTERLY WINDS WILL GUST TO 20-25 KNOTS DURING TODAY.  
 
/OUTLOOK FOR KMSP/  
SUN...VFR. WIND NE 5-10 KTS.  
MON...MAINLY VFR. CHANCE MVFR/SHRA. WIND E 15-20G30KTS.  
TUE...MAINLY VFR. CHANCE MVFR/SHRA. WIND E 15-20G30KTS.  
 

 
   
MPX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES
 
 
MN...FROST ADVISORY FROM 1 AM TO 9 AM CDT SUNDAY FOR BENTON-  
CHIPPEWA-DOUGLAS-KANDIYOHI-LAC QUI PARLE-MEEKER-MORRISON-  
POPE-REDWOOD-RENVILLE-STEARNS-STEVENS-SWIFT-TODD-YELLOW  
MEDICINE.  
WI...NONE.  
 

 
 

 
 
DISCUSSION...TDH  
AVIATION...CTG  
 
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