A more typical December feel across the Heartland

Weather

A more typical December feel across the Heartland

Across the Corn Belt, rain showers stretch from the lower Great Lakes region into the Ohio Valley, where a few producers have been unable to complete corn and soybean harvests. Meanwhile, cold, breezy weather prevails in the western Corn Belt. Monday morning’s low temperatures fell below 10°F across large sections of Minnesota and the Dakotas. In addition, weekend snow blanketed areas from North Dakota to northern Lower Michigan, with snow showers lingering early Monday across the upper Great Lakes region.

On the Plains, markedly colder air and breezy conditions have arrived in the wake of a cold front’s passage, following last week’s record-setting warmth. Monday morning’s low temperatures dipped below 0°F in parts of Montana and North Dakota, where a patchy snow cover exists. Weekend snowfall totaled 2.5 inches in Havre, Montana, and 2.0 inches in Bismarck, North Dakota. The remainder of the region is devoid of snow, with some stands of winter wheat struggling to become well established amid late-autumn and early-winter dryness.

In the South, rain showers and a few thunderstorms in the vicinity of a cold front stretch from the Tennessee Valley to the western Gulf Coast region. In advance of the front, warm weather is promoting late-season fieldwork across the southern Atlantic States. Cooler air trails the front’s passage; Monday high temperatures will remain below 50°F in the mid-South.

In the West, the latest round of Northwestern precipitation stretches from the northern Pacific Coast to the northern Rockies. The remainder of the region, from California to the western slopes of the central and southern Rockies, continues to experience mild, dry weather.

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