Welcome weekend rain; seasonable temperatures this week

Minnesota and Wisconsin were finally blessed with a weather system that spread showers of rain across the area over the weekend. Rainfall amounts were quite varied, as expected from scattered convection.

Helpful rain, but not a drought-buster

Some spots reported 1 to 2 inches or more of rain while other locations were not as fortunate.

In the Twin Cities, the official measurement at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport was about three-fourths of an inch. In the southwestern suburbs, however, the National Weather Service office in Chanhassen measured a solid 2 inches.

My backyard rain gauge in Minneapolis collected 1.42 inches of rain to add substantially to the monthly total that had been only 13 one-hundredths (.13) of an inch until then.

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That rain will soak into mainly upper soil layers and will be wonderful for crops, lawns and gardens. But the drought will continue until more rains fall and increase the soil moisture content into deeper layers.

The week ahead

Here’s a quick look at the week ahead. Temperatures should remain fairly close to normal for late June. The best next chance of rain will be Tuesday night and Wednesday.

This week's forecast
Twin Cities National Weather Service

Pleasant Monday

Isolated morning sprinkles will dry out as they drift southward across southern Minnesota.

Weather radar at 9 a.m. Monday
National Weather Service

Clouds should thin a bit as the day progresses. Afternoon high temperatures should be near normal from the mid-70s to low 80s. The Twin Cities will have a high near 80 with a northwest breeze of 10 to 20 mph.

Wildfire smoke

Smoke from Canadian wildfires is still on the move across Minnesota and Wisconsin Monday. An air quality alert for smoke is in effect for all of Wisconsin until noon on Thursday.

Air quality alert until noon Thursday
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources

Warmer Tuesday

Tuesday will be warmer with highs mainly in the low to mid 80s, but cooler along the North Shore. Scattered afternoon thunderstorms will likely pop across northern Minnesota.

More rain possible midweek

Our next best chance of rain should arrive for Tuesday night and Wednesday. Some storms could be on the strong side. There is a marginal (level 1 of 5) risk of severe weather for about the southern half of Minnesota on Wednesday.

Severe weather risk for Wednesday
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Storm Prediction Center

Highs on Wednesday look to be from the mid-70s north to the mid 80s south, and cooler again near Lake Superior.

Mostly quiet later in the week

Weather should be fairly quiet with near-normal temperatures from Thursday through next weekend. Thursday might be one of the warmer days prior to the weekend.