Few Sprinkles Monday - Brighter Tuesday Ahead
The simulated weather outlook from AM Monday to AM Thursday shows a few showers across parts of the Upper Mississippi Valley AM Monday and possibly again PM Wednesday into Thursday.
Precipitation Potential Through Thursday
The precipitation potential through early next week shows the heaviest south and east of the metro.
Monday Weather Outlook
Here's the weather outlook for Monday, which shows readings in the 40s and 50s across much of the state. These high temps will be nearly -5F to -15F below average for early May.
Monday Weather Outlook For Minneapolis
The weather outlook for Minneapolis on Monday shows a few lingering showers early in the day with high temps holding near 60F
Sunday Meteograms
The meteorgrams for Minneapolis on Monday show temps warming to near 60F much of the day with a few lingering showers possible early. Northerly winds will be gusty at times up to 20mph or more at times.
Extended Temperature Outlook
Here's the extended temperature and weather outlook over the next 5 to 7 days in the Twin Cities. Highs on through the week with be running below average by nearly -5F to -10F through the week ahead.
Spring Leaf Index
If you look close, so of your backyard trees and bushes have actually started to show signs of spring leaves emerging. According to the NPN, this is happening nearly 2 to 3 weeks earlier than normal across Minnesota and Wisconsin.
"How do you know when spring has begun? Is it the appearance of the first tiny leaves on the trees, or the first crocus plants peeping through the snow? The First Leaf and First Bloom Indices are synthetic measures of these early season events in plants, based on recent temperature conditions. These models allow us to track the progression of spring onset across the country. April 27, 2021 - Spring leaf out has arrived in all but the most northern and highest elevation parts of the country. After arriving early in southern parts of Southwest and Southeast states, cold temperatures halted the progress of spring leaf out for several days across the northern part of the Southeast, Southern Great Plains, and mid-Atlantic. Spring leaf out arrived days to weeks early across much of the northern Great Plains, Midwest, and Northeast. Spring bloom has arrived in the southern half of the country. Spring bloom is patchy, with much of Texas days to weeks late, while parts of Kansas, Tennessee, Missouri, Illinois and Indiana are days to weeks early."
Extended Temperature Outlook
Here's the ECMWF & GFS extended temperature outlook for Minneapolis over the next couple of weeks. The week ahead will see temps running below average, but by the 2nd week of May, we could see readings back to near normal.
8 to 14 Day Temperature Outlook
According to NOAA's Climate Prediction Center, the 8 to 14 day temperature outlook shows cooler than average temps across the northern tier of the nation, while warmer than average temps will be found across the southeastern US.
Cooler First Full Week of May With a Few Showers
By Todd Nelson, filling in for Douglas.
According to the American Academy of Dermatology, May is National Melanoma month. Today is Melanoma Monday, which is dedicated to the first Monday in May to raise awareness about skin cancer. Keep in mind that we are only about 7 weeks away from the Summer Solstice, so the sun is about as strong as it is going to get all year for the next 2 to 3 months.
As the weather continues to warm and more people head outdoors, it is important to protect yourself from harmful UV rays. Wearing sunscreen is an easy first step. Check your skin regularly and if you notice abnormal moles, see your dermatologist.
After a very warm weekend, the week ahead will feature temps that are more typical for mid April. Areas of light rain will linger today, followed by brighter skies on Tuesday and Wednesday. Another round of showers arrives Thursday, but the heaviest appears to sail south of us.
Temps look to gradually warm back to if not even above average levels by mid month. Good news for Anglers setting their sights on the Fishing Opener on the 15th.
Extended Forecast
MONDAY: AM showers. Peek of PM sunshine. Winds: NW 10-15. High: 60.
MONDAY NIGHT: Slight chance of a T-Shower overnight. Winds: NE 10. Low: 46.
TUESDAY: Brighter skies. Isolated PM sprinkle? Winds: NNW 7-12. Wake-up: 42. High: 60.
WEDNESDAY: Mix of clouds & sun. Few PM showers. Winds: N 5-10. Wake-up: 40. High: 60.
THURSDAY: Cooler. Spotty afternoon rumble. Winds: NNW 5-10. Wake-up: 41. High: 58.
FRIDAY: Mostly sunny and nicer. Winds: N 5-10. Wake-up: 41. High: 61.
SATURDAY: Increasing clouds. Rain overnight. Winds: SE 10-15. Wake-up: 43. High: 58.
SUNDAY: Cloudier. PM T-Showers. Winds: ENE 7-12. High: 72.
This Day in Weather History
May 3rd
1905: A 'mixed bag of weather' occurs in Minnesota. Western Minnesota is pelted with hail, while snow falls over the Arrowhead.
Average High/Low for Minneapolis
May 3rd
Average High: 66F (Record: 93F set in 1949)
Average Low: 45F (Record: 18F set in 1967)
Record Rainfall: 1.72" set in 1912
Record Snowfall: 0.5" set in 2013
Sunrise/Sunset Times for Minneapolis
May 2nd
Sunrise: 5:58am
Sunset: 8:21pm
Hours of Daylight: ~14 hours & 22 minutes
Daylight GAINED since yesterday: ~ 2 minutes & 40 seconds
Daylight GAINED since Winter Solstice (December 21st): ~ 5 hours & 58 minutes
Moon Phase for May 3rd at Midnight
0.5 Days Since Last Quarter Moon
What's in the Night Sky?
"As the Eta Aquariid meteor shower picks up steam these next several mornings – May 3, 4 and 5, 2021 – watch for the waning moon to sweep past the ringed planet Saturn and then the giant planet Jupiter. On May 3, the moon passes due south of Saturn, to stage a conjunction, only a few hours before the moon reaches its half-illuminated last quarter phase. A little over one day after the moon-Saturn conjunction, the moon will sweep due south of the king planet Jupiter. Meanwhile, as for Neptune, although we show you its location on our chart above, it is not visible to the eye. Read more: All you need to know: Eta Aquariid meteors Here's some astronomy jargon for you. Technically speaking, the moon is said to be at dichotomy when it appears half-illuminated to us, yet at quadrature when the moon is 90 degrees from the sun on the sky's dome. The two events (dichotomy and quadrature) almost happen concurrently, at least as far as the moon is concerned, at the first or last quarter phase. A half-illuminated last quarter moon is synonymous with west quadrature, that is, with the moon being 90 degrees west of the sun. In common usage, many think of dichotomy and quadrature as synonymous. Yet did you know that a quarter moon is always a tiny bit more than 50% illuminated? It is around 50.13% illuminated at the last quarter phase, such a small amount more than 50% that the difference isn't visually discernible."
National High Temps Monday
The weather outlook on Monday shows warmer than average temps in the eastern half of the US with cooler that average temps moving into the Central US.
National Weather Outlook
The weather outlook through midweek shows scattered showers and storms moving through the Eastern US, some of which could be strong to severe with heavy rainfall.
Extended Precipitation Outlook
The extended precipitation outlook over the next 7 days shows widespread heavy rainfall across the Southern US, where localized flooding can't be ruled out. Meanwhile, much of the Southwest will remain dry.
Extended Snowfall Outlook
Here's the extended snowfall outlook into next week, areas of snowfall continuing across the spine of the Rockies.
Climate Stories
" 'Gargantuan' hailstone that fell Wednesday may claim new Texas record"
"Everything's bigger in Texas. Apparently that extends to hail, including one stone that may have been more than a half-foot wide. It fell amid a barrage of prolific hailstorms that incurred potentially billions of dollars in damages across Fort Worth, Oklahoma City and areas west of San Antonio Wednesday night. Hardest hit were areas near the University of Oklahoma, where hail damaged virtually every vehicle exposed to the elements. Destructive hail bombards areas near Oklahoma City, Fort Worth and San Antonio Perhaps the most potent storm of the day blossomed over Coahuila, Mexico, during the midafternoon before drifting east into South Texas, where it dropped hail the size of grapefruits. While the largest official report stood at 4 inches, emerging evidence suggests some of the stones may break new state records. One stone that landed in Hondo, Tex., about 30 miles west of San Antonio, may vie for a state record."
See more from Washington Post HERE:
"A Decade After 2011 Tornado Super Outbreak, Survey Reveals Americans Have More to Learn about Tornado Safety"
"Many Americans still lack awareness of basic tornado safety information and essential ways to protect themselves if a tornado strikes, a new survey from the nonprofit Federal Alliance for Safe Homes (FLASH) shows. Today, on the ten-year anniversary of the 2011 Tornado Super Outbreak, FLASH is launching the #TornadoStrong campaign and website with resources and information to increase consumer knowledge of tornadoes, as well as lifesaving preparedness plans and safe rooms. FLASH surveyed 1,000 residents and homeowners in tornado-prone states to measure awareness and understanding of safe and unsafe behaviors during tornadoes, the importance of certified safe rooms and storm shelters, and common terms used by meteorologists and the media."
See more from PR News Wire HERE:
"Melting Mountain Glaciers May Not Survive the Century"
"IF YOU HAVEN'T hiked across a glacier yet, you might want to get booted up sometime soon. The world's high-mountain glaciers are melting faster than scientists previously thought; since 2015, they have been losing nearly 300 billion tons of ice per year. If this rate of melting continues, many could disappear entirely by the middle of the century, according to a comprehensive new study out today. Researchers in Canada, France, Switzerland, and Norway collected 20 years of satellite images taken from a special camera on a NASA satellite called Terra. The device, called ASTER, for Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer, took images of more than 210,000 glaciers around the world, photographing each with two separate lenses to create three-dimensional views of their surface features. The study excluded the massive ice sheets that cover Greenland and Antarctica, which are being studied by other teams of scientists."
