One More Day of Showers, Then Sunshine!

Winnipeg and the Red River Valley will see one more day of wet weather before a shift in the large-scale pattern finally returns some sunshine to the region. The initial cost will be some cool weather, but a decent blast of warmer weather should move in for Sunday!

The nearly 2 weeks of cloudy weather will continue today thanks to another disturbance rippling through the region in the northwest flow that has set up over the region. Rainfall will be fairly light today, coming from scattered showers beginning mid-day and lasting through the afternoon rather than any organized, large area of rain. Alongside the rain will be west to northwesterly winds in the 15–25km/h range with perhaps a bit of gustiness on top of that through the afternoon hours.

Winds will shift to be more westerly tonight, leading to a cooler overnight low than we’ve seen lately; the more westerly component to the wind will mitigate the warming effect the lakes can have on us at this time of year and allow cooler air to push into the Red River Valley. Thanks to that, temperatures will drop to around the –2°C mark tonight under mostly cloudy skies.

Sun Reappears Saturday

Saturday will bring an end to the persistent cloud that has blanketed the region for nearly two weeks as the dominant flow shifts to be more southwesterly, bringing drier air through the low-levels into Southern Manitoba. There will likely be a fair amount of cloud in the Red River Valley in the morning, but the winds will pick up to 20–30km/h through the morning and the cloud cover should push out of the region through the afternoon, leaving us with a sunny end of the day. There’s uncertainty as to exactly how long the cloud will stick around on Saturday; models tend to be too quick on moving cloud out of the Red River Valley, but it seems a safe bet that by the end of the afternoon, the sun will be shining.

Some of the clearing will be facilitated by a ridge of high pressure moving through the region; thanks to that, our daytime high will be limited to just a couple degrees above freezing. Fortunately, a warm front will push through overnight and keep overnight lows seasonably mild and near the freezing mark.

GDPS Surface Winds & Pressure for Sunday November 8, 2015
The GDPS is forecasting a low pressure system to track across the Central Prairies on Sunday, bringing milder weather to southern Saskatchewan and Manitoba

Sunday will be a beautiful day. With Winnipeg & the Red River Valley firmly entrenched in the warm sector of the low pressure system passing to our north, temperatures will climb to around the 10°C mark with winds out of the south at around 20km/h. There really won’t be anything to complain about!

Pleasant Weather to Start Next Week; Chance of Snow Mid-Week

The pleasant weather will persist into the beginning of next week with seasonal to slightly above-seasonal temperatures continuing and no precipitation expected. A mid-week cool down is possible, though, and with it may come the first snowfall of the season for Winnipeg; at this point we’ll just have to wait and see how things develop.

NAEFS 8-14 Day Temperature Anomaly Forecast issued 00Z November 6, 2015
NAEFS 8-14 Day Temperature Anomaly Forecast issued 00Z November 6, 2015

In the long-range, the broken record continues and generally warmer-than-seasonal temperatures are expected. As the NAEFS shows in the image above, for the 8–14 day forecast range—the end of next week into the week after it—there’s a very high likelihood of above-seasonal temperatures. This doesn’t mean that the temperatures will consistently be above seasonal and cold weather isn’t possible; rather that, overall, conditions will average out to warmer than seasonal.

Given that November has been off to far worse starts than the green grass and late-season golfing of this year, other than the lack of sunshine[1] one can’t really complain too much! Unless you really like the cold and snow.

Enjoy the weekend and we’ll be back bright and early Monday morning with your forecast to start off next week!


  1. The persistent cloud cover has also been partly responsible for the continued warmth in the region, so there’s that…  ↩

Unsettled Weather Continues; Snow Evades Red River Valley

Unsettled Weather Continues; Snow Elusive in Red River Valley

The unsettled pattern that’s been a mainstay of weather chatter since the beginning of the weekend will continue to bring more dreary and wet weather to Winnipeg through the remainder of this week. The upside? Temperatures will continue to remain unseasonably warm for the foreseeable future; not a bad trade if you can handle the absence of sunshine!

Today will see Winnipeg and the Red River Valley under the influence of a low pressure system moving through the Lake of the Woods region and off into northwestern Ontario. While this system is expected to spread 5–10cm of snow across the Parkland region of western Manitoba, here in the Red River Valley generally light shower or drizzle activity is expected with total rainfall amounts under a couple mm or so. Daytime highs will climb to around the 7°C mark with relatively light winds eventually shifting out of the northwest to 20–30km/h in the afternoon.

RDPS 24hr. Total Precipitation valid at 12Z 05 November, 2015
This total precipitation forecast from the RDPS shows how much precipitation is expected from Wednesday morning through the overnight period.

As we head into the evening, the chance for showers or drizzle will continue well into the evening and overnight period. Total amounts, once again, look quite low. The drizzle and/or shower activity will likely taper off late overnight or early Thursday morning. Expect a low near 3°C.

Thursday will be a bit of an unpleasant day as a cooler temperature steady near 4°C combines with brisk northwesterly winds at 30–40km/h as another low pressure system passes by southeast of the Red River Valley. While conditions will be dry through the morning hours, Winnipeg will quite likely see more shower activity push in from the south for the afternoon hours, clipped by the northwestern flank of the area of rain and snow produced by the low moving through.

RDPS 12hr. Total Precipitation valid at 00Z 06 November, 2015
The RDPS, among many other models, is forecasting Winnipeg to be clipped by the northwestern flank of an area of precipitation that will spread across SE Manitoba through the day.

The showers will taper off late in the afternoon and the Red River Valley will head towards an overnight low near –1°C under mainly cloudy skies with diminishing winds.

Friday continues the above-normal daytime highs, and the dreary weather, as mainly cloudy conditions give way to a few scattered showers in the afternoon with northwest winds of 20–30km/h. Daytime highs will sit near 4°C. Friday night will be quite cool with a low near –3°C and, finally, clouds beginning to scatter out.

Mild Weekend Ahead; Sunshine Possible Too!

This weekend looks to continue the above-seasonal temperatures with daytime highs in the mid-single digits and mixed to mainly sunny skies. Saturday might see somewhat windy conditions, however things look quite pleasant on Sunday with little by way of wind, sunshine and a high near 5°C or so. Granted, at this time of year, sunny forecasts can quickly become stratus-filled broken promises, so we’ll be keeping an eye on things as we head towards the weekend.

Dreary Start to the Week

This week will start out on the dreary side as a series of low pressure systems bring rain to southern Manitoba. Some parts of southern Manitoba may even see a bit of snow by midweek.

A low pressure system will bring light rain to parts of southern Manitoba on Monday
A low pressure system will bring light rain to parts of southern Manitoba on Monday

Monday

Today will feature mainly cloudy skies and light rain showers as a low pressure system passes through southern Manitoba. Rainfall amounts in the Winnipeg region are expected to be under 2 mm, but areas further north may see slightly higher amounts. Winds will be light and temperatures will be relatively mild (near 10C), so conditions will generally be comfortable outside of the rain showers.

Tuesday

More rain appears to be on tap for Tuesday as we come under the influence of another low pressure system pushing up from the south. Like Monday, accumulations are expected to be small, with amounts of only around 2 mm expected. It will be windier and cooler than Monday though, with temperatures in the mid single digits and breezy north-east winds.

Wednesday

Wednesday will see the continuation of Tuesday’s system with more rain likely in store. Accumulations will probably range from 2-4mm in the Red River Valley. There is a chance of snow in the higher terrain of western Manitoba, but it is too early to say how much could fall. Temperatures will be in the low to mid single digits with a breezy north-west wind.

Long Range

The long range forecast continues to strongly hint at above-normal weather for the first half of November. The combination of a positive Arctic Oscillation and the increasing influence of El Nino will allow Pacific air to continue moving across the Prairies while preventing significant Arctic air masses from surging southward. That isn’t to say we won’t get cold weather this November, but it certainly seems most likely that warmer conditions will dominate. Given that the normal high for this time of year is only 3C, “warm weather” will be a relative term from this point forward.

Milder, Showery Weather on Tap For The Weekend

Milder weather is pushing into the Red River Valley to round out October, making for a comparatively pleasant Halloween evening compared to some of the years past. There will be several chances for precipitation, though, as the same pattern that is bringing the warmer weather to our region will also bring several disturbances rippling through as well.

Today will be a fairly pleasant day for Winnipeg & the Red River Valley as temperatures begin to climb above seasonal values thanks to a warm front pushing eastwards through the province. Here in Winnipeg, temperatures should climb to around 9°C under mixed to mainly cloudy skies with winds increasing out of the south to around 30km/h. There will be a very slight chance of a shower this afternoon, although for the most part, it looks like things should stay north of the city.

RPDS Precipitation Forecast for October 31, 2015 (12hr. Cumulative)
The RDPS is forecasting around 2-5mm of rain for the Red River Valley on Saturday

Skies will clear this evening and temperatures will dip to a low near 3°C. More clouds will begin pushing in overnight as a low pressure system moves towards the province from Alberta.

Rainy Halloween Clears Out In Time For Trick or Treating

Saturday will be off to a cloudy and rainy start as an area of showers moves into the region alongside a low pressure system moving through. The cloud and showers will stick around through much of the morning and into the afternoon before finally tapering off sometime mid-to-late afternoon. Winds will start out of the south at around 20km/h, shift to the west-northwest late in the afternoon to 25–35km/h, and then diminish overnight.

The high temperature will be around 10°C. Total rainfall expected will be low at just a couple of mm.

Conditions for trick or treating will be great this year. There may be a few showers lingering around late in the afternoon or early in the evening, but they should clear out fairly quickly in the evening. Temperatures will be mild, hovering between 8–10°C through much of the evening, while the winds will be a bit breezy from the west, but diminishing as the evening wears on. All in all, it will be quite a pleasant evening!

More Showers Possible Sunday

Sunday will see another chance for shower activity, thanks to a low pressure system zipping along the international border. It will be another mainly cloudy day with highs near the 10°C mark and relatively light northeasterly winds for much of the Red River Valley. Precipitation amounts are expected to be fairly minimal, so despite the somewhat gloomy-seeming forecast, it could end up being a relatively pleasant day, especially considering that we’re talking about +10°C highs in November!

Daylight Savings This Weekend

Just a friendly reminder that this weekend we set our clocks back an hour! Daylight savings time ends this Sunday, November 1st at 2AM, so remember to set your clock back an hour on Saturday night before you head to bed!