Air Quality Alert on Tuesday
"With warm temperatures, sunny opaque skies, low humidity, and southerly surface flow, air quality impacts are expected Tuesday afternoon and evening. Ground-level ozone will develop, and the MN Pollution Control Agency labeled the threat level as orange in the alert area. #mnwx"
Smoke Map From Monday
The smoke map from Monday showed widespread smoke continuing across Canada and spilling into much of the Central US including the Upper Midwest. This will make for somewhat cloudy/hazy skies and poor air quality for some into the week ahead.
Smoke Analysis Midday Tuesday
The smoke analysis by midday Tuesday shows widespread smoke overhead across the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes Region thanks to wildfires burning in Canada. This will make skies smoky and hazy through much of the day with unhealthy air qualities.
Weather Outlook Through The Weekend
Our last full week of May looks somewhat tame across the Midwest through the first part of the week with mild and smokey sunshine. There could be a few stray t-showers here and there, but there will be a better chance of more widespread rain and thunder across the Dakotas this upcoming weekend.
Precipitation Outlook
The precipitation outlook into the upcoming week doesn't appear to be all that impressive with some locations seeing 0.25" to 0.50" tallies across the northern part of the state. Much of southern Minnesota, including the Twin Cities could be completely dry.
Twin Cities Weather Outlook For Tuesday
The weather outlook for the Twin Cities on Tuesday, May 23rd shows another sunny and mild day with highs warming into the upper 70s to near 80F for the Twin Cities. Thanks to Canadian wildfires, skies will be fairly smoky/hazy with some air quality concerns across parts of the state
Weather Outlook on Tuesday
Temps on Tuesday will be nearly +10F to +15F above average across the region with highs warming mainly into the 80s, which is more like mid-June standards. Skies will remain smoky and hazy for much of the day as well with a spotty shower or thunderstorm across far northern Minnesota.
Meteograms For Minneapolis
The hourly temps through the day Tuesday show temps starting in the low/mid 60s in the morning and warming into the low/mid 80s by the afternoon. Skies will generally be sunny, but smoke from Canadian wildfires will keep skies smoky and hazy throughout the day. Southwesterly winds will be a bit breezy with some 15mph at times.
Extended Temperature Outlook For Minneapolis
Temperatures will still be very mild on Tuesday with temps warming into the low/mid 80s, which will be nearly +10F above average for late May. We'll see a slight cooldown midweek with readings back to near normal in the low/mid 70s, which will still be quite enjoyable. A gradual warming trend takes us back to near 80F later this week and the weekend ahead, will be nearly +10F above average.
Extended Weather Outlook For Minneapolis
The extended weather outlook for the Twin Cities looks sunny and mild with temps warming into the low/mid 80s. There could be a few t-showers here and there this week, mainly north of the Twin Cities around midweek. The weekend is looking better and drier and a large bubble of high pressure keeps much of the unsettled weather across the Dakotas.
Extended Temperature Outlook
The NBM extended temperature outlook for Minneapolis keeps fairly mild readings in place through midweek. A weak cool front will drop temps into the lower 70s midweek, but a gradual warming trend gets us back to the 80F mark by the last weekend of the month.
Weather Outlook
A fairly large bubble of high pressure will settle in across the Great Lakes late this week, which will keep skies generally quiet. On the western edge of this high pressure system, winds will turn more southerly and warm things up in the Midwest late week/weekend ahead.
8 to 14 Day Temperature Outlook
According to NOAA's Climate Prediction Center, the 8 to 14-day temperature outlook shows warmer-than-average temperatures settling in across the northern tier of the nation and especially across the Midwest and the Great Lakes. Cooler than average temps will be in place across parts of the Southwestern US.
8 to 14 Day Precipitation Outlook
According to NOAA's Climate Prediction Center, the 8 to 14 Day precipitation outlook shows more active weather possible across The Plains and the Southern US.
Health Impacts Of Breathing Wildfire Smoke
By Paul Douglas
Things never turn out exactly the way you think they will. Months ago I thought I'd be tracking severe thunderstorms in late May, not thick plumes of Canadian smoke.
Some of us are more sensitive to smoke than others, but on bad air quality days the health impacts are significant for everyone. According to researchers at the University of Alberta, breathing smoke from a wildfire can be equivalent to smoking up to2 packs of cigarettes a day, depending on the density of the smoke. Good news: experts say the lungs of most healthy adults fully recover from smoke, in spite of short-term symptoms, like shortness of breath and coughing.
Another potentially bad smoke day is shaping up today, with enough murky sunshine for 80 degrees. Smoke may keep us a few degrees cooler.
We cool off tomorrow with a stiff wind blowing from the east, before temperatures mellow by the weekend. I see hazy sunshine and low 80s for Memorial Day weekend. A mostly-dry 1-2 weeks for boating, yardwork and power-napping? Nice.
Extended Forecast
TUESDAY: Warm smoky sunshine. Winds: SW 10-15. High: 83.
TUESDAY NIGHT: Partly cloudy & quiet. Winds: SSW 5-10. Low: 59.
WEDNESDAY: More clouds, cooler breeze. Winds: E 10-20. High 68.
THURSDAY: Partly sunny and milder. Winds: SE 10-20. Wake-up: 53. High 73.
FRIDAY: Lukewarm sunshine. Winds: SE 8-13. Wake-up: 52. High 77.
SATURDAY: Hazy sunshine. Winds: S 8-13. Wake-up: 57. High: 79.
SUNDAY: Sunny, miraculously dry. Winds: SE 5-10. Wake-up: 58. High: 81.
MONDAY: Smoky-blue sky, June-like. Winds: S 5-10. Wake-up: 60. High: 83.
This Day in Weather History
May 23rd
1914: An early heat wave hits the state, with a high of 103 at Tracy.
Average High/Low for Minneapolis
May 23rd
Average High: 72F (Record: 89F set in 2012)
Average Low: 53F (Record: 28F set in 1963)
Record Rainfall: 1.56" set in 1975
Record Snowfall: NONE
Sunrise/Sunset Times for Minneapolis
May 23rd
Sunrise: 5:36am
Sunset: 8:43pm
Hours of Daylight: ~15 hours & 07 minutes
Daylight GAINED since yesterday: +1 Minute & 58 Seconds
Daylight GAINED since Winter Solstice (December 21st): ~ 6 hour & 21 minutes
Moon Phase for May 22nd at Midnight
3.3 Days Before First Quarter Moon
National High Temps on Tuesday
Temperatures on Tuesday will be very mild across much of the Midwest, where readings will be nearly +10F to +15F above average. It'll be a little cooler along the East and West Coast, but not too terribly cold.
National Weather Tuesday
The weather outlook on Tuesday will be unsettled across the Plains and the northern tier of the nation with a few spotty t-storms.
National Weather Outlook
The weather outlook through Wednesday shows spotty showers and storms developing across the Plains and also in the Southeastern US. There could be a few isolated strong to severe storms here and there, but it won't be too widespread.
Extended Precipitation Outlook
According to NOAA's Weather Prediction Center, the extended precipitation outlook shows heavier precipitation across parts of the Central Plains and also the Southeastern US. A few locations could see 1" to 3" of rain over the next several days.
Climate Stories
"A Huge Chunk of the U.S. Could See Blackouts This Summer"
"Two-thirds of North America could face blackouts over the next few months as summer heat increases demand for electricity, a report from a major electricity regulator has found. The North American Electric Reliability Corporation, which releases regular assessments of grid conditions, said in an outlook released Wednesday that huge swathes of the U.S., from the whole West Coast through the Southwest, Midwest, Texas, and parts of the South and New England, face an "elevated risk" of energy shortfalls. "Increased, rapid deployment of wind, solar and batteries have made a positive impact," Mark Olson, NERC's manager of Reliability Assessments, said in a statement. "However, generator retirements continue to increase the risks associated with extreme summer temperatures, which factors into potential supply shortages in the western two-thirds of North America if summer temperatures spike."
"The world's largest lakes are shrinking dramatically, and scientists say they have figured out why"
"More than half of the world's largest lakes and reservoirs have lost significant amounts of water over the last three decades, according to a new study, which pins the blame largely on climate change and excessive water use. Roughly one-quarter of the world's population lives in the basin of a drying lake, according to the study by a team of international scientists, published Thursday in the journal Science. While lakes cover only around 3% of the planet, they hold nearly 90% of its liquid surface freshwater and are essential sources of drinking water, irrigation and power, and they provide vital habitats for animals and plants."
"Weather Phenomenon Capsizes Boat on Lake Michigan"
"An extremely rare weather phenomenon this week caused a boat to capsize on Lake Michigan in Illinois. The boat capsized just off 31st Beach in Chicago on Tuesday after a sudden gust of wind drastically changed temperatures in the area, WFLD reported. All individuals on board were rescued. The incident was caused by a weather phenomenon exclusive to the area known as a "pneumonia front." It occurs when cool winds off Lake Michigan accelerate inland, causing temperatures to drop drastically."
