Warmer start to the week, then temperatures retreat; thunder chance Tuesday evening
Fall color update for leaf-peepers
Go Deeper.
Create an account or log in to save stories.
Like this?
Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.
We’ll have pretty good leaf-peeping weather today.
Portions of central and northeastern Minnesota have seen scattered morning showers. The showers are moving southeastward and should shrink in coverage by afternoon. A brief passing shower or sprinkle will be possible early Sunday afternoon in central and southern Minnesota and parts of western Wisconsin.
You can check the MPR News interactive radar here. There’s fairly dry air in the lowest part of atmosphere today, so some of the rain that shows up on radar will evaporate before reaching the ground.
We have updated weather information for Minnesota and western Wisconsin on the Minnesota Public Radio News network, and on the MPR News live weather blog.
Turn Up Your Support
MPR News helps you turn down the noise and build shared understanding. Turn up your support for this public resource and keep trusted journalism accessible to all.
Temperature trends
Highs in the 60s are expected Sunday afternoon across most of southern and central Minnesota and on into Wisconsin, with some 50s in far northern Minnesota and northwestern Wisconsin. A few spots in west-central and southwestern Minnesota could top 70.
Our average Twin Cities high temperature is 62 degrees on Oct. 9. Metro area highs will be a few degrees above average Sunday afternoon.
Monday highs range from the 70s in southwestern Minnesota to the upper 50s in the far northeast:
Some spots in the metro area could touch 70.
Monday afternoon wind gusts are expected to be mainly in the 12-16 mph range:
The plotted wind gusts are in knots, with 11 knots equal to 12.7 mph.
Tuesday will be the warmest day of the week, with 70s in most areas and a few lower 80s possible in southwestern Minnesota:
Twin Cities metro area highs are projected to reach the upper 70s on Tuesday. Then our highs retreat to around 60 on Wednesday, followed by 50 Thursday and lower 50s on Friday.
Tuesday p.m. t-storm chance
A cold front sags into Minnesota late Tuesday, with plenty of warm air out ahead of it. That combo could ignite some scattered thunderstorms in Minnesota and western Wisconsin, especially late Tuesday afternoon and Tuesday evening. Check forecast updates.
Fall color update
If leaf-peeping is in your weekend plans, you won’t have to go very far; brilliant fall colors are visible in many parts of Minnesota. I’ve spotted pockets of excellent fall color in the Twin Cities metro area the past few days. Some trees haven’t yet transitioned to autumn hues, and a few trees have already dropped most of their leaves.
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources fall color report for Minnesota State Parks and Trails looks like this:
When you look at fall color maps, keep in mind that all deciduous trees are included. The maples can be peaking in a given area when the overall changeover to fall color is 50 percent or less.
The Wisconsin fall color report can be found here.
Weather nugget
The average Twin Cities high temperature drops 16 degrees from the first day of October to the last day of October. Our average high temp starts at 66 degrees on Oct. 1 and it is 50 degrees on Oct. 31.
Programming note
You can hear my live weather updates on MPR News at 7:35 a.m., 9:35 a.m. and 4:39 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.
