Biggest snow dump of winter expected

A quick clipper was expected to bring snow to Carlton County late Thursday and into Friday, with a few inches expected. Despite it being meteorological spring, winter doesn’t seem to be quite done with the region despite some record warmth and a dearth of snow all season.

The National Weather Service in Duluth predicted a “messy spring storm” to hit the area Sunday into Monday, with total snow of 4 to 6 inches, which would be the largest drop for the winter. There is a 70 to 90 percent chance that Carlton will get hit by the storm at the end of the weekend.

The NWS released its data on winter recorded from Dec. 1 through Feb. 29. In Duluth, the mean temperature in February was 27.3 degrees, a 12 degree uptick from normal. Across the three months, the mean was 25 degrees.

Recorded snowfall is 48 inches below normal, with just 18.7 inches falling since Dec. 1. Last year, records were set for snowfall across the region.

Duluth set a record for days above 45 in the three months with 11.