Much of the snowfall so far this winter has been far to our south and west. In fact, since Dec. 1 some towns in the Oklahoma and Texas Panhandles have had about the same amount of snow (20-21 inches) as Grand Rapids. Sioux City, Iowa has had twice as much as we've had this season, and by Sunday, the Baltimore, Maryland and Washington D.C. areas will have doubled our season total snowfall. In all those areas, the snow melts a lot more than it does here, so they don't have nearly as much on the ground-- unless they're at the tail end of a snowstorm.
The most recent snow depth map tells the story of this winter:
http://climate.umn.edu/doc/snowmap/snowmap_100204.htm
Snow depth is above average in southern and far western Minnesota but below average in Itasca County (although not by a whole lot-- we've had far worse). Likewise this week, several waves of snow have been missing us just to the southwest... from Fargo to the Twin Cities. The same trend will continue into the early part of the weekend.
By Sunday, a more vigorous upper level disturbance will drop south from Canada, and it could spread snow into northcentral and northeastern Minnesota. That is, if it, too, doesn't miss us to the southwest. Certainly, the snow will be heavier in that direction, with an additional 6-12" falling in the same areas that have received much of the snow earlier this week. If we're lucky, Grand Rapids may see several inches of snow, but I think it's more likely we'll see 1-2". Bemidji and Brainerd have a better chance of seeing heavier amounts. The disturbance will move away on Tuesday, and colder air will move back in.
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