Now that’s a warm front! (Return to 80s next week?)

Summer battled back today in the Upper Midwest as warm air gushed into southern Minnesota behind a strong late September warm front.

Temperatures soared to as high as 97 degrees in northern Nebraska late Monday, with 90s pushing into South Dakota and 80s to 90 degrees into southwest Minnesota.

WEATHER ROUNDUP FOR MINNESOTA

NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TWIN CITIES/CHANHASSEN MN

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400 PM CDT MON SEP 20 2010

FAIRMONT SUNNY 90 63 40 S26G39 29.71F HX 90

Check out the satellite and surface data today showing the gush of warm air pushing in.

(click for bigger image)

Surface temperature plot shows the 90s pushing north behind the warm front.

Check out the distinct clearing line moving through the metro Monday (GOES visible 1km resolution) afternoon as the front pushes north.

Longer range forecast: Summer returns?

It looks like summer is not done with Minnesota yet this year.

The medium range forecast models (which go out to about 14 to 16 days) are strongly suggesting that the jet stream will lift north into Canada again, and allow the return of a warm summer like air mass to push north into Minnesota again.

We may see several more days in the 80s as we head through late September and early October if the models verify.

These medium range forecast models care notoriously fickle with precipitation trends, but tend to handle big temperatures trends with more success.

Hang in there...it appears summer like weather may linger onto early October in the crazy weather year we call 2010.

PH