Much of Minnesota is under an Extreme Cold Warning and is dealing with wind chill readings as cold as 40 below. But the pain is likely to be short-lived, with forecasters expecting warmer-than-average temperatures again by this weekend.

The National Weather Service in the Dakotas and Minnesota says it's sticking with the "extreme cold" warnings that it tested last winter. Meteorologists say the winter weather can be dangerously cold even without wind. Forecasters will issue the warning when the temperature could feel like 30 below or colder.

Monday marks the beginning of Winter Hazard Awareness Week, a state effort to get residents prepared for harsh, dangerous weather ahead. The Minnesota Department of Public Safety is focusing on a range of wintry risks this week. Last year's mild winter may have lulled people into a sense of complacency.

Punxsutawney has Phil, but what does the weather in central Pennsylvania have to do with Minnesota? The Twin Cities have Stanley and the official local groundhog could not see his shadow through all the fog. If large rodents are any predictor, Minnesota's winter, such as it is, will end early.

Hope you enjoyed the warm Thanksgiving Day: Things are about to change. The Weather Service says a cold front will push through Friday night, bringing with it strong winds and much colder air.

This year's strange weather patterns will continue through the weekend. Severe weather is expected across the nation's mid-section and could very well make it as far north as southern Minnesota.

Wind chills hit -20 and -40 below across the state Thursday morning, and Kare says temperatures in parts of the state likely won't climb much above 0 at all today.