Saturday, January 3, 2026  3:25 AM 

Prepared by Bob Weisman, SCSU Meteorologist and Professor Emeritus

Some Chance of Freezing Precipitation Tomorrow and Tomorrow Evening

Little Light Snow Early Today

Radar is busy this morning (see College of DuPage north central US radar loop). However, not very much of that snow is reaching the ground (see very few asterisks at weather stations on the NWS Aviation Weather Center METAR map). Parts of northern Minnesota to our north and east might see an inch of fluffy snow early this morning, but St. Cloud will not have as good as chance at seeing an accumulation under an inch as we did Tuesday through Thursday mornings.

Sunday: Chance of Freezing Rain or Freezing Drizzle in Spotty Showers

The main weather obstacle remaining in our winter holiday period is the chance for some light precipitation from tomorrow possibly into tomorrow night. There will eventually be a chance of a few inches of shovelable snow in northern and especially northeastern Minnesota, possibly into the St. Croix Valley (set tab to 12 UTC Mon, 6 AM Mon CST, and see the likely 2 inches on the NWS WPC probabilistic winter precipitation guidance). This will come as enough moisture moves in to create a steadier precipitation especially late tomorrow into tomorrow night. However, the precipitation will begin with a few isolated showers moving through northern and central Minnesota during the day on Sunday. There will be a pocket of really mild air aloft, so there will be a layer of air above freezing at 5,000-10,000 feet above the ground. But, ground temperatures will be stuck in the 20's, so steadier precipitation would create a threat for freezing rain or even sleet in central Minnesota (set tab to 12 UTC Mon, 6 AM Mon CST, and the precipitation type to freezing rain on the NWS WPC probabilistic winter precipitation guidance). Or we could also be out of the steady precipitation, but persistent low clouds and temperatures below freezing will produce some spotty freezing anytime from midday Sunday through Sunday night.

Back to the Gloomy Side of Mild Next Week

The painfully slow warming trend will continue early next week. Highs will be in the upper 20's to near freezing on Monday, the lower 30's on Tuesday, and perhaps even the middle 30's on Wednesday. I have the possibility of persistent low clouds and fog, since the process warm air riding over the top of leftover cold air is favorable for trapping lingering moist cold air near the ground. There will be a threat for some spotty freezing drizzle and at least the morning commutes could be slow in areas of dense fog. Low temperatures will likely be in the 20's through the early part of next week. On Tuesday, there may be a possibility of a slightly more intense system passing, but by that time, temperatures may be warm enough to allow only sleet or even rain showers.

A Wetter Pattern for Central US (some part of it) Develops by Late Next Week

This pattern of roller-coaster temperatures and merely light precipitation threats could change by the second half of next week. There are signs that a series of stronger storms will hit the West Coast of the US and lingering in the southern Rockies. If that happens, the flow over the US to the east of the Rockies will change to southwest-to-northeast, meaning that any storm that gets into the Plains will have the opportunity to work with more moisture than during recent systems. This is shown by the development of heavier precipitation in the Central US on Days 4-7 of the NWS WPC quantitative precipitation forecast). We'd likely begin with enough warm air to make rain possible at the start of the storm, but there may be some snow chance (see Day 7 on the NWS WPC Days 4-7 winter weather outlook). Even though Minnesota is shown with heavy precipitation in the last panel, it's far too early to take any storm track exactly as is forecast, so I'd put more uncertainty in any late week precipitation chance. But, I'm saying the chance for some precipitation in Minnesota late next week is better than you're telling me there's a chance...

National Travel Issues Mostly in California This Weekend

In the meantime, California and the West Coast will continue to be soaked by a new storm (see College of DuPage continental US radar loop). The rainfall throughout the Christmas-New Year's period is over 10 inches in much of coastal California, and over 5 inches in the major Washington and Oregon coastal cities near the Cascades (set NWS Water Prediction Service precipitation map to yesterday, and last 14 days for period). The flooding potential is being aggravated by the unusually high astronomic tides right now.

Ground and Air Travel Links

• Minnesota
• North Dakota
• South Dakota
• Nebraska
• Iowa
• Wisconsin
• Manitoba
• Ontario
• Air Travel Delays and Cancellations from FlightAware.com

December 2025 finished with two days milder than average (yesterday not shown yet on the NWS St. Cloud December 2025 high/low temperature table), mainly since yesterday began with above freezing temperatures during the early morning hours (see 7-day graph of St. Cloud temperatures from MesoWest), but it won't be enough to prevent St. Cloud's second colder than average month of the past 32 months since April 2023.

There is a revised December snowfall total of 16.3 inches, thanks to the late month small accumulations. That is still 15th highest December total on record. For the season, St. Cloud has seen 24.3 inches, which is the 20th highest Sept-Dec snowfall in St. Cloud records. While December was only the 2nd of the past 32 months with a colder than average temperature, 2025 still ended up well above normal. My December 2025 and Annual Weather Summary will note how much of the extreme heat ended up being in March, May, and October. Meanwhile, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources climatology division mostly rated warm-season weather in the Top 5 Minnesota Weather Events of 2025. While severe weather was limited, the storms that produced major wind damage in Bemidji were rated the #1 event. #2 was the repeated episodes of smoke from Canadian wildfires. Numbers 3 and 4 were heat, both early (May) and late (October).

Detailed St. Cloud, MN, and Vicinity Forecast

Confidence Level: "The Bugs Are Waiting for Me to Mow the Lawn"

Saturday 1/3/2026: Mostly cloudy with perhaps an early flurry, then some afternoon sun, light winds, and not quite as cold. High: between 18 and 23. Winds: NW 5 MPH. Chance of measurable snowfall: 10%.

Saturday Night: Partly clear, light winds, and colder. Perhaps some fog. Low: between 0 and +5. Winds: SE 5 MPH. Chance of measurable snowfall: 10%.

Confidence Level: "Extra Bugs Will Come From Every Home on the Block to Hover Around My Head"

Sunday 1/4/2026: Clouding up with a chance for freezing drizzle or some scattered freezing rain or sleet showers. Milder. High: between 24 and 28. Winds: SE 8-15 MPH. Chance of measurable precipitation: 40%.

Sunday Night: Mostly cloudy with some areas of dense fog possible. Spotty freezing drizzle is possible in the fog. Low: between 18 and 24. Winds: NE 5 MPH. Chance of measurable precipitation: 10%.

Monday 1/5/2026: Some early fog, then mostly cloudy, but even milder. High: between 28 and 33. Winds: SE 5 MPH. Chance of measurable precipitation: 10%.

Monday Night: Mostly cloudy with areas of dense fog possible. Low: between 25 and 30. Winds: SE 5 MPH. Chance of measurable precipitation: 10%.

Confidence Level: "Enough Bugs Will Fly into My Mouth to Throw Off My Diet

Tuesday 1/6/2026: Some early fog, then mostly cloudy again. Maybe some rain or mixed precipitation showers. A bit milder. High: between 30 and 35. Winds: SE 5-10 MPH in the morning, NW 5-10 MPH in the afternoon. Chance of measurable precipitation: 40%.

Tuesday Night: Perhaps partly clear during the evening, but more areas of dense fog possible during the early morning hours. Low: between 23 and 28. Winds: SW 5 MPH. Chance of measurable precipitation: 10%.

Wednesday 1/7/2026: Some early fog, then mostly cloudy and mild again. High: between 32 and 37. Winds: SE 5 MPH early, shifting to NW 5-10 MPH midday and afternoon. Chance of measurable precipitation: 10%.

Extended: Continued milder than average through Thursday?? Too early to speculate about a potential Friday storm threat...or miss???

Forecast Confidence (10 - "The Rabbits Will Thump Even Though I Fed Them"; 0 - "The Rabbits Will Offer To Groom My Bald Spot"): 7 Saturday, 6 Saturday night, 4 Sunday through Monday night, 3 Tuesday through Wednesday.

Yesterday's High: 13°F (set at midnight Friday night); Yesterday's Daytime High: 12°F; Overnight Low (through 3 AM Saturday): 11°F; Today's High (through 3 AM): 14°F
St. Cloud Airport 24-Hour Melted Precipitation (through 3 AM Saturday): None; SCSU 24-Hour Precipitation (through 3 AM Saturday): None

Next Update: Sunday, January 4, 2026 6 AM

Let me know what you think about this forecast and discussion by emailing SCSU meteorology professor Bob Weisman. Please note that I make the forecast, not the weather!

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