Well, well, well. It’s about time, even if it may take a few more weeks. At least the end is in sight. Possibly.

The Climate Prediction Center issued its monthly assessment Feb. 21 of what the weather will be like in the United States for the next three months. The issuance covers March, April and May.

The good news for North Dakota, Minot included, is that our lengthy stretch of below normal temperatures is expected to come to an end. Don’t reach for those summer jackets just yet though. Any change in the current below-normal spell may not arrive until mid-March or later. In fact, the CPC’s March outlook places North Dakota, and most of the central U.S., in the category of “below normal” on the anticipated temperature map.

When the break in our colder than usual weather pattern will occur is not known precisely, but the CPC has enough confidence in its long-range forecasting to at least include North Dakota in the central section of the U.S. that is expected to return to a more normal temperature pattern at least for April and May, perhaps sooner.

Normal daytime highs for April range from the upper 40s to upper 50s. May temperatures range from the low 60s early in the month to 70 degrees at the end of the month.