Live updates and results from primary election night

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Despite the southern end of Minnesota waking up to a little sprinkle-y stuff Friday, the rain itself is really limited. It’s about time to unfurl the garden hose or irrigation, as the soil moisture across much of Minnesota is really low. We could have a few more isolated rumbles of thunder but they will stay very much hit and miss. 

Most have beautiful weather Friday evening, the mosquito count is pretty low, air quality remains excellent, and water temps are fairly mild (69-76 in most MN lakes). Just be really careful on Superior. Outside of the breakwaters, there is some serious chop and even a ‘beach hazard’ statement for strong rip currents. 

Saturday’s long been the main event for our rain chances this week. I think central and northern have by far the best chances of a solid round or three of showers on Saturday, now from mid-day through evening. Notice how much colder it will be as a consequence in northern Minnesota. The GFS image below shows that trend. That said, some newer data from the Europeans (from Friday afternoon) does have several tenths of an inch of rain all across Minnesota on Saturday. If we can muster rain around the Cities, it’s most likely in the morning.

We do expect some clearing for the southern half of Minnesota Saturday, hence the much-warmer conditions in southern cities. Sunday dries out across most of the region, and the heat dome begins to show some signs of cracking. Believe it or not, we’ve really been spared BIG TIME by the latest heat wave. The weather was much, much hotter farther south of Iowa. 

Monday night through next Wednesday morning is my ‘big hope’ for heavier rains. I say that because I’ve been burned by ‘wishcasting’ for drought-clearing rains before. This far out, big synoptic systems are never a guarantee but the weather maps have long held rain. The front is likely to arrive to northwestern Minnesota on Monday evening, stalling out in the middle of Minnesota overnight into Tuesday morning. Then it blows through on Wednesday. If you’re wanting rain, this would be an ideal setup for you. 

That also sets up a secondary cool-down into the middle of next week. Have a great weekend, y’all! 

Weather and Climate News

Updraft® - Minnesota Weather News

Ben Cathey

Author

The cooler trend is also waning, but it won’t be totally toasty for the weekend.

Showers looking more limited - you'll need the sprinkler

Go Deeper.

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