Weekend split; 60s next week, warm Labor Day weekend?

Rain chances late Sunday and Monday

It’s the last full weekend of August. How did that happen exactly?

This weekend is a split weather decision. Saturday will be the sunnier, nicer day this weekend. Clouds increase Sunday. Scattered showers and thunderstorms roam the Upper Midwest Sunday night and Monday. The Canadian GEM model paints rain areas moving from west to east across Minnesota Sunday and Monday.

Canadian GEM model Sunday through Monday
Canadian GEM model rainfall forecast Sunday through Monday
Environment Canada via tropical tidbits

Another inch?

Many of us may pick up another inch of rain Sunday night and Monday.

Canadian GEM model rainfall forecast
Canadian GEM model rainfall forecast Sunday and Monday
Environment Canada via tropical tidbits

September preview next week

It’s the time of year when anemic summer cool fronts soon morph into brisk cold fronts as they sweep through Minnesota. Monday’s cool front brings hints of early October. Highs in the upper 60s and low 70s will feel different around the Twin Cities next week. Lows in the low 50s make for good sleeping weather.

Create a More Connected Minnesota

MPR News is your trusted resource for the news you need. With your support, MPR News brings accessible, courageous journalism and authentic conversation to everyone - free of paywalls and barriers. Your gift makes a difference.

NOAA temperature forecast for Minneapolis
NOAA temperature forecast for Minneapolis
NOAA via Weather Bell

Lows in the 30s and frost visit northern Minnesota again early next week. Frost is common in northeast Minnesota in late August.

Frost can occur at ground level even with temperatures in the upper 30s at the 5-foot NWS instrument shelter level.

The average date for the first 32-degree temperatures in northern Minnesota favor early to mid-September. The average date for the first 32-degree temperature in the Twin Cities in fall is early October.

Average first fall freeze dates
Average first fall freeze dates
Midwest Regional Climate Center

Warmer Labor Day weekend?

The medium-range forecast maps suggest a return to summer for Labor Day weekend. Highs in the (upper?) 70s look likely Saturday and Sunday. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Global Forecast System model pushes highs back into the 80s by Labor Day. Other models are not as optimistic. We’ll see.

16-day GFS model temperature output for Minneapolis
Sixteen-day GFS model temperature output for Minneapolis
NOAA via Meteostar

Stay tuned.