textproduct: Duluth

KEY MESSAGES

- Light snow and flurries today with minimal accumulation.

- Cold air tonight may create wind chills down to 35 below.

- Widespread light snowfall on Sunday with up to a couple inches.

- Temperatures trend warmer this weekend into next week.

DISCUSSION

Issued at 250 AM CST Thu Jan 29 2026

A weak weather system moving across the region today will bring a round of flurries and very light snow, particularly for areas north of Highway 210 and across northwest Wisconsin. If you see any snow today, it will be very light, with accumulations generally limited to a dusting or a few tenths of an inch on the upper-end. As the system moves south this evening, winds will shift to the north-northeast over the Big Lake, setting the stage for lake effect snow along the South Shore. Most of the South Shore can expect 1 to 2 inches of light snow through Friday morning, though a heavier band could locally produce slightly higher amounts in northeastern Douglas and northwestern Bayfield counties if it intensifies more than expected.

The next two days will continue to be 10 to 20 degrees below normal air temperatures. High pressure building in tonight will cause temperatures to plummet across northern Minnesota, with actual air temperatures ranging from 15 below to 25 below zero. Combined with light winds, wind chill values will drop into the 25 to 35 below zero range. We are closely monitoring the need for Cold Weather Advisories tonight, particularly for areas north of US Highway 2 in far northern Minnesota. While Friday will remain cold with single-digit highs, Saturday begins a slow recovery with temperatures reaching the upper teens and lower 20s.

A clipper system will move across the region late Saturday night into Sunday. This will provide a widespread period of light snowfall across northeast Minnesota and northwest Wisconsin. Snow will likely start in north-central Minnesota after midnight Saturday and spread east through Sunday morning. Current forecast call for a general 0.5 to 1.5 inches of accumulation before the system exits Sunday evening.

Looking further ahead, we are finally seeing a break in the cold spell. By early next week, a shift in the upper-level flow will bring much more seasonal air into the Midwest. High temperatures are forecast to climb into the 20s, and overnight lows will moderate into the single digits to teens above zero. Another weak system brings a 20 to 30 percent chance of light snow around the Tuesday to Wednesday timeframe.

AVIATION /12Z TAFS THROUGH 12Z FRIDAY/

Issued at 531 AM CST Thu Jan 29 2026

A weak weather system is producing flurries and very light snowfall across far northern Minnesota early this morning. Periodic MVFR visibilities and ceilings are being observed. Prevailing conditions though remain mostly VFR so opted for mainly TEMPOs of those MVFR conditions at this time as the main period of snow drops southeastward and tapers off from 18Z to 00Z. Guidance suggests a period of post-snowfall MVFR ceilings that last under incoming high pressure before the drier airmass scours out that sky cover this evening. VFR conditions outside of the South Shore lake effect snowfall is expected after 00-03Z this evening. Terminals along the South Shore can expect IFR visibility and MVFR ceilings from that lake effect snowfall into Friday daytime.

MARINE /FOR NEARSHORE WATERS OF WESTERN LAKE SUPERIOR/

Issued at 528 AM CST Thu Jan 29 2026

Another round of downsloping northerly winds is forecast for tonight behind a passing weak disturbance. Small Craft Advisories are in effect for Taconite Harbor northward tonight into Friday morning for those hazards. Along the South Shore, onshore northerly winds are expected to build wave heights starting this evening. Wave heights up to 5 feet being forecast into early Friday morning prompted those areas to have Small Craft Advisories over the same time period. Northerly winds around or under 20 knots Friday daytime slowly back to southwesterly Saturday.

For the open water discussion, refer to the NWS Marquette Area Forecast Discussion at weather.gov/mqt.

DLH WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES

MN...None. WI...None. MARINE...Small Craft Advisory from 6 PM this evening to 10 AM CST Friday for LSZ140-141-146-148-150.