Record Snowfall In February Precedes Record Low Temperatures In March

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Although a record-setting February is behind us, March is on track to set some records of its own.

The temperature in the Twin Cities Sunday morning officially tied the record low for March 3 -- set in 1873 -- at minus 13 degrees. Meteorologist Mike Augustyniak says Sunday is only the beginning of a stretch of record cold days.

The the Twin Cities metro wasn't the only region waking up to frigid cold. Southern Minnesota set records of its own Sunday, as Rochester tied its coldest recorded temperature of minus 17 degrees. These below-zero temperatures will linger through Sunday night and into Monday morning throughout the state.

Air temperatures are predicted to be in the single digits by 7 a.m., while feels-like temperatures could reach minus 27 degrees. In southwestern Minnesota, feels-like temperatures could be closer to minus 40 degrees.

Augustyniak says part of the reason the cold is sticking around is because of the copious amounts of snow still on the ground. Twenty-one inches remain, which is the deepest snow cover Minnesota has seen since 2014.

As for more snow, a storm system that's plowing through the Midwest and over to the East Coast is on track to stay south of Minnesota, but Augustyniak says there is a chance we could see some precipitation in the form of snow or freezing rain Thursday.

The first glimpse at a thaw comes at the latter end of the week, when we could see highs in the 30s. Although its a welcome change from negative temperatures, we're still about 10 degrees below the average for this time of year.