Warmer and muggier with little rain likely

Warm, smoky weekend

High pressure over the Great Lakes has all but halted the normal movement of weather systems into the Upper Midwest from the west. Meanwhile, flow aloft has been bringing in smoke from wildfires in Canada and the western U.S. The result for the weekend is a continuation of warm, smoky sunshine and a lack of badly-needed rain.

Saturday afternoon temperatures reached 90 degrees or a bit more way up north in Ely and Cook.

Sunday is likely to be a degree or two warmer with smoky sunshine again. Look for high temperatures from the 80s across much of the state to some low 90s in the northwest around Roseau and Hallock. The Twin Cities will have a high around 88 with a light southeast breeze.

Hotter and muggier next week

Hot temperatures reaching the century mark of 100 degrees in eastern Montana this Saturday afternoon will begin pushing farther east into the Dakotas over the next few days. Expect high temperatures across Minnesota to get a bit warmer and definitely muggier. The Twin Cities will likely heat into the low 90s most days next week.

Skimpy prospects of badly-needed rain

As our drought deepens, the next week brings just chances of scattered showers but no drought busters.

Isolated or scattered showers might dampen parts of northern Minnesota on Monday and Tuesday. Scattered showers could work their way farther south later in the week.

But amounts are forecast to do little to combat the drought’s depth and extent. Nearly all of Minnesota is forecast to receive less than a quarter of an inch of rain over the next seven days, although parts of the Arrowhead might do better. A large area of southwestern Minnesota might not get any measurable rainfall.