Tag: mbstorm

Occasionally Unsettled, Smokey as Seasonal Temperatures Return

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An upper low over the northern Prairies will bring relief from the heat along with unsettled conditions, but smoke will continue to be an issue.

ECMWF 24-hour Precipitation Accumulation valid 06Z Wednesday June 4, 2025
Scattered showers are possible across much of southern Manitoba while far northern Manitoba sees accumulating precipitation. Little rain is expected where it is needed most.

Over the past few days, the upper ridge over the Prairies has been replaced with an upper low anchored near the Hudson Bay coast. Its influence will linger over Manitoba for much of the week as it gradually trundles into Hudson Bay.

For Winnipeg, this means daytime highs will sit in the 20 to 25 °C range for much of the week with mixed skies developing most days. Overnight lows should sit within a few degrees either side of 10 °C.

There will be a few chances for showers or thunderstorms across the region over the coming days. The best chance for much of the region will be this afternoon. Scattered showers and thunderstorms will develop over central Manitoba midday then spread south through the afternoon. With up to 500 J/kg of MLCAPE (instability) and 20 to 30 knots of bulk shear (organization), many of these showers will be capable of developing into thunderstorms. No organized severe weather threat is expected from the activity this afternoon.

The showers will taper off through the evening and skies will clear.

More showers or thunderstorms will be possible Tuesday, but they won’t likely be in Winnipeg. The best chance will be through the Interlake east towards the Ontario border with a slight chance of a few in southeast Manitoba.

On Thursday, a few showers or thunderstorms will be possible from central Saskatchewan southeast into Parkland Manitoba. Another area will develop in the afternoon through the northern United States; a few may track along the border regions but aren’t expected to push further north at this time.

All that said, it means that though there will be a chance of showers or thunderstorms almost every day ahead in southern Manitoba, today will be the only day they’re likely to happen in Winnipeg.

Air Quality an Ongoing Concern

Over the next few days, west to northwest winds will dominate; light winds at night will strengthen into the 20 to 30 km/h range during the day with gusts of 40 to 50 km/h. These winds will draw plumes of wildfire smoke into the region.

The simpler part of the smoke forecast is much of central Manitoba, the Parkland, Interlake, and areas east to the Ontario border will be smothered in smoke for much of the week. Expect very poor air quality through much of the week ahead.

For areas further south, plumes of smoke will either graze by or move through over the coming days. The first push of smoke will move into the region later today with a plume grazing Winnipeg and the northern Red River Valley on its way into the southeast corner of the province. The smoke will clear tonight, then another plume is forecast to slump into much of southern Manitoba on Wednesday morning, then gradually clear from west to east through the afternoon.

Smoke forecasts don’t extend past this point, but it looks like another plume of smoke may impact the Winnipeg area on Thursday. Keep in mind that smoke spread is difficult to forecast, and it’s likely that the details and timing may shift in the days ahead. Keep an eye out for air quality advisories from the MSC in the coming days.

Long Range Outlook

Warmer weather will push into the region to end the week, likely bringing daytime highs into the 25 to 30 °C range. Nocturnal showers or thunderstorms may be possible overnight Friday into Saturday, then widespread showers or thunderstorms will be possible later Saturday into Sunday as a cold front moves through the region.

It’s likely that smoke conditions will improve with the push of warmer air, but more smoke is likely behind the cold front on Sunday.

One of the main things to note is that for the foreseeable future, any northwest, north, or east-northeast wind may bring wildfire smoke into the region.

Today’s seasonal daytime high in Winnipeg is 22 °C while the seasonal overnight low is 9 °C.

Scorching Heat to Give Way to Unsettled and Much Cooler Weather

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The scorching heat and dangerous fire conditions will persist in Winnipeg and the Red River Valley for another day before the heat shifts east and showers and thunderstorms move into the region.

RDPS 2m Temperature Forecast valid 21Z Tuesday May 13, 2025
Tuesday will bring another day of scorching heat and dangerous fire conditions in southern Manitoba.

Winnipeg will be off to a hot start today with temperatures in the low 20s that quickly climb to 30 °C by lunch. Southerly winds will pick back up to 40 gusting 60 km/h as temperatures continue to climb to a high in the mid-30s. Relative humidity will again drop below 20% today, which coupled with the heat and moderate winds will pose another risky fire weather day for the region. There will be a slight chance of an isolated evening shower or thunderstorm, but nothing substantial is expected for the region. Temperatures will head to a low in the mid-teens tonight with winds shifting to the north and easing.

On Wednesday, an upper low will shift from Idaho into southern Saskatchewan. As it pushes into the region, it will support a broad area of showers and thunderstorms that move from southeast Saskatchewan into western Manitoba and across the Interlake region. This broad area of cloud and rain showers will intensify the temperature change across a warm front draped southwest-northeast across southern Manitoba. Over a short distance, temperatures will change from around 30 °C on the warm side of the front to the upper teens on the cold side of the front. Right now, Winnipeg is forecast to sit barely on the cold side of the front with a high in the mid-20s, but small changes in the position of that front may change the daytime high by 5 °C or more.

Showers and thunderstorms will blossom across Manitoba on Wednesday night, but much of the activity looks to move through west and north of the Red River Valley. Temperatures in Winnipeg should dip down into the mid-teens on Wednesday night with cloud cover beginning to move into the area.

On Thursday, the unsettled weather will shift east into the Red River Valley as a pair of shortwaves lift north out of the Dakotas towards southern Manitoba. Temperatures will peak in the low 20s as more cloud and scattered showers and/or thunderstorms push through the region. with moderate northwest winds up to 40 gusting 60 km/h developing through the day.

On Thursday night, unsettled showery conditions will likely transition to periods of rain as temperatures continue to cool and a much broader, more organized low pressure system develops. Temperatures will dip down into the mid-single digits overnight with moderate northwesterlies continuing.

Long Range Outlook

Heading into Friday, periods of rain will continue through the day as more cold air pushes into the region. Temperatures will hold steady or even fall through the day, potentially dropping as low as +1 or +2 °C. Heading into Friday night, temperatures may drop to freezing, and precipitation over the region could turn into a wintery mix of rain and/or snow with a risk of freezing rain. Those northwest winds will continue through the night.

Heading into the weekend, the precipitation looks to gradually taper off on Saturday with a high in the low single digits and easing winds. Temperatures may dip below freezing on Saturday night. Cloudy skies will likely stick around into Sunday with a warmer high in the 5 to 10 °C range.

Temperatures will slowly trend towards seasonal values this week, but another disturbance mid-week may bring more rain to the region and keep temperatures seasonably cool through the week.

Today’s seasonal daytime high in Winnipeg is 19 °C while the seasonal overnight low is 5 °C.

Pleasant Weekend Weather Arrives

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Temperatures in Winnipeg will climb into the upper teens as the weather turns sunny and warm this weekend.

RDPS 2m Temperature Forecast valid 21Z Saturday April 26, 2025
Mild temperatures will spread across the Prairies this weekend.

Beautiful spring weather will move into southern Manitoba this weekend. A combination of a weak upper ridge sliding into the southern Prairies along with a low pressure system crossing the northern Prairies will push warmer temperatures across the Prairies.

Under sunny skies, temperatures in southern Manitoba will climb into the 15 to 20 °C range this afternoon. An area of high pressure sitting right over southern Manitoba will keep winds light, making for a beautiful afternoon outside. Temperatures will dip down close to the freezing mark tonight; winds will shift out of the south as the area of high pressure drifts southeast of the province through the night.

Saturday will bring more sunshine to the region as temperatures climb into the upper teens. Southerly winds will be more prominent, picking up into the 30 to 40 km/h range. Those winds will ease on Saturday night as cloud cover pushes into the region.

The next disturbance to impact the region will be taking shape over the western United States on Sunday. This will keep skies cloudy over the region through the day and bring a small chance of a rain shower or two to the region. Southerly winds will continue through the day at 20 to 30 km/h as temperatures climb into the mid-teens.

The low pressure system south of the border will take shape on Sunday night as it pushes into the Dakotas. North of its track, showers and/or thunderstorms will spread through the northern United States. North of the border in Manitoba, the chance for rain showers will pick up through the night as temperatures dip into the upper single digits.

Long Range Outlook

Much of the rain with this system is expected to track south of the border, while areas further north see a decreasing chance of precipitation. On Monday, a cold front will sweep south through the region, bringing moderate northerly winds and cooler temperatures. In Winnipeg, temperatures will likely hover near 10 °C with cloudy skies giving way to clearing late in the day.

The rest of the week will bring cool to seasonable temperatures with sunshine giving way to more cloud and another chance of showers. Cooler, sunnier conditions are possible to end next week.

Today’s seasonal daytime high in Winnipeg is 14 °C while the seasonal overnight low is +1 °C.

Beautiful Spring Conditions Ahead

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Winnipeg will see a couple beautiful days before seasonal temperatures return to end the weekend.

RDPS 2m Temperature Forecast valid 21Z Saturday April 12, 2025
Mild temperatures will spread across the southern Prairies to end the week.

The upper ridge we talked about on Monday has arrived, and temperatures across southern Manitoba are warming up. The region will see breezy southerly winds today up into the 30 to 40 km/h range with mainly sunny skies. Temperatures across southern Manitoba will be much warmer today, with highs in the 15 to 20 °C range in the Red River Valley climbing into the low 20s over the southwest corner of the province. Highs will be cooler wherever lingering snowpack remains, but with dew point values above zero, that snow will be melting quickly.

Temperatures will dip down into the 5 to 10 °C range tonight in Winnipeg.

Saturday will be even more pleasant in Winnipeg with daytime highs again climbing into the 15 to 20 °C range with partly cloudy skies. Winds will be light, making for an even nicer afternoon to spend outside than today.

Temperatures will dip down back down into the 0 to +5 °C range on Saturday night with increasing cloudiness.

For Sunday, the big question has been whether Winnipeg would see no precipitation or a lot of precipitation. Weather models have flip flopped as the week progressed, but are finally beginning to hone in on an agreement.

The weather set-up is a complicated one. From the west, a low pressure system will leave southern Alberta and push across southern Saskatchewan beginning Saturday night. From the south, a Colorado Low will form and begin to eject northeast across the American Plains at the same time. The interplay between these two systems is the crux of the weather forecast, and it’s looking more and more likely that most of the system will bypass the Winnipeg area. As the Colorado Low lifts towards Minnesota, the Saskatchewan system will dig south and begin to merge with the CO Low. This will drag the precipitation from Saskatchewan into the Dakotas, while the main precipitation from the CO Low pushes towards NW Ontario and the Great Lakes.

There is a chance that Winnipeg may see a few rain showers or flurries later in the day on Sunday, but at this point no accumulating precipitation looks likely. Much of southern Manitoba will likely avoid most of the precipitation as it falls in Saskatchewan, the Dakotas, and Ontario instead.

Otherwise, temperatures will be seasonably cool on Sunday with a high in the 5 to 10 °C range with northerly winds of 20 to 30 km/h. Skies will stay cloudy into Monday with a low near the freezing mark on Sunday night.

Long Range Outlook

Looking ahead, Monday will bring cloudy and cool conditions again with a slight chance of a rain showers in the afternoon, then the region will see improvement with sunshine and near-seasonal temperatures on Tuesday.

Much of the week looks to bring mixed conditions with a couple nicer days and a couple days with a chance of rain or flurries. By the weekend, it looks like another warm-up with potential highs in the mid- to upper-teens will arrive.

Today’s seasonal daytime high in Winnipeg is 9 °C while the seasonal overnight low is -2 °C.