A partial meltdown today and later this week will lead to a freeze-thaw cycle. (file photo/paNOW Staff)

By Rob Mahon

Icy Conditions Ahead

Freeze-thaw cycle, more arctic air coming to Prince Albert

Feb 7, 2023 | 12:00 PM

The good news is, a run of warmer-than-average weather is due to settle in for the Prince Albert area. The tougher news is, colder overnight lows will leave a lot of ice as the snow begins to thaw.

A freeze-thaw cycle is likely in the cards for much of central Saskatchewan this week, with today marking the thaw as the daytime high gets up around the 4 C mark.

“There’s a weather system moving through northern Saskatchewan today that is putting central Saskatchewan into milder temperatures,” Terri Lang, regional meteorologist with Environment Canada, said. “We’re looking for above-freezing temperatures for the day, which is a bit of a bonus for early February. That weather system will slump tomorrow.”

This means, according to Lang, that we should expect “a quick shot of snow” followed by a change in the winds. As they shift to come in from the North, colder air will start to follow.

“The temperatures will go above freezing, so we will see some melting,” Lang said. “Then, as the temperatures go down below zero, things freeze up and we have issues like black ice on the roads and pavement frost coming out. A little bit of a shot of snow on top of that, so the roads in the morning are probably going to be pretty icy.”

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The freeze-thaw cycle won’t end tomorrow either, because even though the overnight low is supposed to come down to -19 C, the daytime highs will still be above average, culminating in another day at or above freezing on Saturday.

“It does look like there are some warmer temperatures on the way later on in the week, where it could squeak above the freezing mark again,” Lang said. “Then we kind of have the falling below that as well. It looks like by the middle of next week, the arctic air will settle back in and we’ll get much colder temperatures.”

That arctic air isn’t expected be record-breaking, but it will eventually take the temperatures down into the -20 C range for the daytime high. This means, as Lang observed with wry humor, that the groundhogs predicting six more weeks of winter were probably right.

“On the Prairies, especially in Saskatchewan and Manitoba, if you predict six more weeks of winter on February 2, you’re probably going to be right” Lang said.

After Wednesday’s overnight low of -19 C, even the lows will be well above average for the rest of this week.

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rob.mahon@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @RobMahonPxP