Another Sunny, Warmer Day Wednesday - Rain Chances Late Week

While a cold front will be pushing across the state on Wednesday, it'll be a dry frontal passage with plenty of sunshine in store. Morning temperatures will start off in the mid-60s with highs climbing to the mid-80s. Winds will start the day out of the west-southwest before becoming northerly after the front passes through. That front will also lead to slowly falling dewpoints during the day - starting off in the low 60s but falling to the mid-50s by the evening.

A fairly quiet hump day is ahead across the state with lots of sunshine and highs in the 70s up north (where the front will pass through Tuesday night or early Wednesday) to the 80s down south where the front takes a little bit more time to get to.

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Behind that cold front, we'll be a touch cooler heading into Thursday and Friday with highs in the low 80s. Thursday will be another sunny day across the region before we watch a couple of quick-hitting systems move in Thursday night and Friday bringing the chance of a few showers and thunderstorms.

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Weather Prediction Center rainfall forecast through 7 AM Saturday.

With those couple of systems Thursday night into Friday, the best chances of rain will be out in western and southern Minnesota with the potential of up to a third of an inch in areas that get both rounds of rain. The rain chances greatly decrease the farther east and north you go, with rain chances pretty minimal north of I-94.

Taking a look toward the weekend another surge of warmer weather will move in as we head toward events across the region this weekend. Any rain chances Saturday look to be early in the Twin Cities, with a better chance of rain out toward central Wisconsin during the day. Otherwise, a mix of sun and clouds to partly sunny skies are expected on Saturday with sunnier skies returning Sunday. Highs in the mid to upper 80s are expected Saturday, with mid-80s expected Sunday.

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It has been a warm and somewhat wet start to the month in the Twin Cities (even if most of that rain fell in a two-day period over Saturday and Sunday). The average temperature is the 43rd warmest to date on record for the month and precipitation is sitting at the 37th wettest start to August.

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While we got over an inch of rain this past weekend in the Twin Cities, MSP is still just about 6" below average since June 1st. The 3.81" is the fifth driest start to meteorological summer.

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Note To Self: Don't Drink Rainwater
By Paul Douglas

Every threat is an opportunity - a chance to evolve, improve, innovate and invent your way out of any new challenge. We face daunting risks from a rapidly-changing climate, but new tools are emerging to warn of weather extremes days, even weeks in advance.

Air, water and plastic pollution is a chronic challenge - microplastics have been found worldwide, and the risk to human health is an open question.

New research at the U. of Stockholm suggests that rainwater isn't safe to drink anywhere on Earth, due to the presence of "forever chemicals", PFAS, found in food packaging, electronics, cosmetics and cookware. I'm optimistic we will invent new, cleaner, more sustainable ways to live. My hope is that many of these inventions come from Minnesota entrepreneurs.

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Paul's Extended Twin Cities Forecast

WEDNESDAY: Warm sunshine. Wake up 64. High 86. Chance of precipitation 0%. Wind N 7-12 mph.

THURSDAY: Partly sunny and pleasant. Wake up 64. High 83. Chance of precipitation 10%. Wind E 5-10 mph.

FRIDAY: Showers and T-storms return. Wake up 65. High 74. Chance of precipitation 60%. Wind SE 8-13 mph.

SUNDAY: Blue sky, another fine day. Wake up 68. High 86. Chance of precipitation 10%. Wind E 5-10 mph.

MONDAY: Ripe for showers, few T-storms. Wake up 69. High 84. Chance of precipitation 60%. Wind SE 8-13 mph.

TUESDAY: Some sun, a bit cooler. Wake up 67. High 82. Chance of precipitation 20%. Wind NE 7-12 mph.

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Minneapolis Weather Almanac And Sun Data
August 10th

*When Do We Drop Below 14 Hours Of Daylight?: August 17 (13 hours, 58 minutes, 36 seconds)
*When Does The Sun Start Rising At/After 7 AM?: September 22nd (7:00 AM)
*When Does The Sun Start Setting At/Before 8 PM?: August 26th (8:00 PM)

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This Day in Weather History
August 10th

2004: Cool Canadian air is ushered in on strong northwest winds. International Falls has its record coldest high temperature for this date with 49 degrees. The Twin Cities only saw a high of 59.

1939: Very heavy rain falls at Two Harbors, accumulating to 5.2 inches of rain.

A stationary boundary across the Ohio Valley to the Northeast will lead to more showers and thunderstorms as we head through Wednesday. Some could be strong around Washington D.C. More showers and storms are expected from the Southeast to the western United States. A few strong storms are also possible in the Northwest.

Some of the heaviest rain through the middle of the week will fall in the lower Mississippi Valley to the Ohio Valley and the Appalachian Mountains, where 1-3" of rain could fall in spots. Due to recent heavy rains across parts of Kentucky, Flood Watches are in place.

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July 2022 was third hottest on record for the U.S.

More from NOAA: "July 2022 will go down in the history books as the third-hottest July on record for the U.S., according to scientists from NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information. From drought to deluge, the nation saw remarkable extremes last month. Drought conditions intensified or expanded across parts of the U.S., while others were hit by historic rainfall that led to catastrophic flooding."

More from the Star Tribune: "Higher temperatures and bigger swings between wet and dry weather are challenging the plants and animals that Ojibwe people in northeastern Minnesota have lived alongside for hundreds of years. With species like wild rice, paper birch and moose at risk, the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, Bois Forte Band of Chippewa and Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa are all working on strategies to aid ecosystems on their reservation lands in northeast Minnesota. Members of the three bands also have rights under an 1854 treaty to hunt, fish and gather on lands ceded to the U.S. government in one of the most vulnerable sections of the state. Full of cold-loving spruce forests, this northern ecosystem is under intense pressure from a warming climate. Parasites are flourishing that feast on species like moose. Trout can't survive in overheated streams. Many of these plants and animals may simply migrate north. But that's not necessarily an option for the Native people whose traditions are entwined with them."

Who will pay for all the electric car chargers? Pretty much everyone

More from Axios: "Americans nationwide will likely face higher electric bills to pay for the next stage of the country's electric vehicle (EV) charger buildout — even if they don't drive an EV. Why it matters: The U.S. will need a massive investment in public charging infrastructure to match the anticipated spike in EV demand. But such capital outlays don't make economic sense for many companies until there are more EVs on the road — which won't happen until there are more chargers. It's a classic chicken-and-egg scenario that, in the near term, is likely to be solved by regulated public utilities that can pass on the investment burden to their customers over many years."

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Thanks for checking in and have a great day! Don't forget to follow me on Twitter (@dkayserwx) and like me on Facebook (Meteorologist D.J. Kayser).