Updraft® - Minnesota Weather News

Summer heat set to return across Minnesota; little hope for big rain

90s are returning soon, so soak up mild stuff now

Iso rain chances
Rain over the next several days should be really isolated. Even Saturday doesn't look remarkable.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Some places around Minnesota have dropped 60 degrees in the last week to nearly frosty levels, but the heat is expected to return on Thursday. Substantial rain is unlikely anytime soon. Even Saturday’s promising rain threat is sputtering out for Minnesota.

Comfortable temps, then heat returns

We knew things would be ultra-comfy for most of Minnesota on Wednesday morning, but we were pretty close to freezing in Embarrass and Brimstone, 38 and 36 degrees respectively!

It was all about the clearing skies and light winds, plus low dew points, leading to atmospheric decoupling Tuesday night. Thanks to MPR News meteorologist Sven Sundgaard for the morning temperatures readouts.

We have a bunch of clouds pinwheeling around a really weak short-wave low-pressure center. That’s holding temperatures down for all of us on Wednesday.

Summery temperatures return on Thursday.

High temps Thursday
Forecast for high temperatures for Thursday.
National Weather Service
Lows Thursday AM
Forecast low temperatures for Thursday
National Weather Service

Slim chances for heavy rain

Despite the cloud cover lingering Wednesday, there’s really not much rain expected through Friday. There may be a couple of raindrops around the Interstate 90 corridor, the Twin Cities and the Arrowhead.

Even Saturday’s rain threat, which looked promising for a week, is sputtering out for Minnesota. The block pattern shifts this more into Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.

We may catch some Saharan dust that’s moving around Tropical Storm Bertha in the Gulf of Mexico. The dust will be up high and probably not even be noticeable.

Sahara dust
We could notice a little Saharan air dust before the smoke.
National Weather Service

Up north, air quality should be great despite wildfires in the Boundary Waters and Canada. The air quality index was better in Ely than the Twin Cities and most of the rest of the United States Tuesday into Wednesday.

Low rain totals
Rain totals forecast through Aug. 2 are pretty low. Some may not see any rain over the next 10 or so days.
National Weather Service
Dry stretch
Minnesota and much of the central part of the country may see below-normal rainfall through the rest of July. A flash drought could develop.
NOAA Climate Prediction Center