AccuWeather.com

In a winter where snowfall has been scarce across the northern Plains, snow and gusty winds will affect part of the region through tonight.

The snow that broke out over southeastern Wyoming and northwestern Nebraska Sunday night has spread into the eastern part of the Dakotas, central Nebraska and western Minnesota.

Folks traveling along I-70, I-80, I-90 and I-94 through the snow area tonight should allow for extra time to reach their destinations. At times the combination of high winds, snow and blowing snow can reduce the visibility to near zero.

Cities expected to have some flakes flying through the air are Aberdeen S.D., North Platte, Neb. and International Falls, Minn.

A band of snow was moving quickly eastward across northwestern Kansas and western Nebraska this afternoon. The snow will tend to diminish before reaching the eastern counties of the states tonight. However, farther north the snow will last for a few hours, bringing more substantial accumulations.

Rain will change over to snow in Omaha this evening, bringing a coating to some areas before tapering off by the morning.

Snow will focus over the Upper Midwest during the day Tuesday reaching into northern Wisconsin and part of northern Michigan.

Snow has been tough to come by so far this winter, and many locations in the northern Plains are well below where they should be this time of year in terms of accumulated snowfall.

For instance, Aberdeen, S.D., has only accumulated 7.7 inches of snow so far this winter season, with an average total seasonal snowfall of 37 inches. Sioux Falls, S.D., hasn't fared much better with 9.1 inches, but that is still well below the average total seasonal snowfall of 41.1 inches. Only 15.3 inches of snow has fallen in Minneapolis, Minn., which again is well below the average total seasonal snowfall of 49.9 inches.

However, with some winter still left to go, these places still have time to catch up and finish with a total closer to their seasonal averages.

On the other hand, much of the northern Plains has been stricken by drought conditions. The drought is not as severe as in Texas, but it still has progressed enough in parts of Minnesota to be characterized as moderate to severe according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.

The U.S. Drought Monitor is a product of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

With the combination of drought and well-above-normal temperatures this winter, it is no surprise that snowfall totals have been down so far.

While the snow that falls later tonight into Monday won't amount to much, it will be a credit toward alleviating the especially dry conditions.

By: Mark Miller, meteorologist