Much Needed Soaking Rains Last Week
It was a soggy week across much of the Upper Midwest. Showers and storms moved into the region on Monday with hail and heavy rains, then finally exited as steady light rain and drizzle on Friday. Many locations across the state had a good spring soaking with some spots seeing several inches of rain.
Twin Cities April Summary So Far
Here's the Twin Cities weather summary through the first week or so of the month. Note that temps and precipitation amounts have been running well above average. It looks like we'll be quite a bit cooler as we head into the 2nd and 3rd week of the month, but precipitation chances will continue to remain slightly elevated as we head into next week.
Twin Cities Weekend Outlook
The weekend outlook for the Twin Cities appears to be drier (thankfully), but it certainly won't be as nice as it was last weekend. Mostly cloudy skies will be with us on Saturday with temps warming into the mid 50s. Sunday *should* be the sunnier and drier day of the weekend as top out close to 60F in the metro.
Dry; Peeks of Sunshine Saturday & More Sun Sunday
Here's the simulated cloud cover from AM Saturday to PM Sunday. Note that Saturday will likely be a mostly cloudy day with perhaps a few peeks of sunshine. Sunday could feature a few more peeks of sunshine, but folks in Wisconsin won't be so lucky.
Weather Outlook for Saturday
The weather outlook for Saturday shows temps running closer to average across much of the state for mid April. Clouds will also linger through much of the day near the MN/WI border. Note that temps will be much warmer farther west where there will be more sunshine.
Saturday Weather Outlook For Minneapolis
Here's a closer look at our weather conditions for Minneapolis on Saturday, which shows highs warming into the mid 50s with breezy NW winds. Saturday will likely be the first day since Sunday of last weekend that we haven't had any rain recorded in the metro.
Saturday Meteograms
Here are the meteorgrams for Minneapolis on Saturday. Note that temps will warm from the low/mid 40s in the morning to the mid 50s in the afternoon. Skies will likely be mostly cloudy with only a few peeks of sunshine. Winds will be out of the NW most of the day around 10-15mph.
Extended Temperature Outlook
Here's the extended temperature and weather outlook over the next 5 to 7 days. Note that high temperature will likely be below average early next week and especially on Tuesday. Keep in mind that our average high for this time of the year is in the mid 50s, so we could be quite a bit below average during the early/middle part of next week. There will also be a few chances of rain next week, which could be mixed with snow late Monday.
2021 Ice Out Dates So Far
According to the MN DNR, most MN Lakes are going ice out nearly 2 weeks earlier than normal this season. Thanks to warmer than normal temps and wetter than normal conditions, quite a few lakes have been going ice out. Mille Lacs Lake was deemed ice out as of April 7th, while the average ice out date is on April 25th. Upper & Lower Red Lake were ice out as of early April, while the average ice out is late April.
See more from the MN DNR HERE:
Average Ice Out Dates Across the State
Here's a look at the average ice out dates across the state. The orange markers across the southern part of the state indicate average ice out dates typically around the last week of March. We typically see average ice out across parts of central Minnesota and around the Twin Cities during the first couple of weeks of April. Folks across the northern third of the state typically see ice out closer to the start of May.
See more from the MN DNR HERE:
Spring Leaf Index
"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 5, 2021 - Spring leaf out continues to spread north across 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 is now arriving days to weeks early across the Midwest and Northern Great Plains. Spring bloom has arrived in parts of Southwest and Southeast states. Spring bloom is early in California and Arizona and patchy in Southeast states."
GDD Tracker - Crabgrass Preventer
Thanks to Michigan State University, the GDD Tracker tracks optimal times to put out Crabgrass Preventer for specific zip codes based on soil temps around the region. According to their model, areas in green below show that right now is when you should get Crabgrass Preventer out before it starts emerging this spring. Seems a little early, but recent VERY warm days have been warming up soil temps significantly and crabgrass germinates when soil temperatures hit about 55°F for 24-48 hours. The week ahead will be quite soggy with some 1" to 2" plus rainfall tallies possible. Next weekend looks drier and warmer, so you should be able to get your preventer down next week if needed.
See more from Michigan State University GDD Tracker HERE:
Extended Temperature Outlook
Here's the ECMWF & GFS extended temperature outlook for Minneapolis over the next couple of weeks. Note that temps won't be quite as warm as they were earlier in the month, but we'll largely see highs in the 50s and 60s through the end of the month.
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 for mid/late April across the eastern two-thirds of the nation
Cool Correction - Slushy Surprise Tuesday?
By Paul Douglas
That could have easily been 2 feet of slushy snow, if recent Aprils are any guide. A slow-motion storm limping across the Upper Midwest dumped out well over 2 inches of rain on much of Minnesota since Monday's record-smashing 85Fin the Twin Cities. Considering most of the western USA is facing deepening drought, I suspect this was a multi-million dollar rain for farmers, who are getting a jump on spring planting this year.
Clouds linger, but that perpetual leak in the sky above your home will shut off today. Expect a dry sky with 50s. Oddly, a Midwestern storm will "retrograde" northwestward on Sunday, brushing Wisconsin and possibly far eastern Minnesota with showers. A cold rain falls Monday, and weather models printout an inch or two of slush for the MSP metro Tuesday; possibly plowable amounts from Mille Lacs and Brainerd to Detroit Lakes. It'll melt, but no, spring never moves in a straight line. Not in Minnesota.
In other news no floods, tornadoes, hamburger-size hail or volcanic eruptions.
Extended Forecast
SATURDAY: Mostly cloudy, breezy. Winds: NW 10-20. High: 53.
SATURDAY NIGHT: Mostly cloudy and quiet. Winds: NNW 5-10. Low: 41.
SUNDAY: Clouds linger, showers east of MSP. Winds: NW 10-20. High: 57.
MONDAY: Raw with a cold rain likely. Winds: W 15-30. Wake-up: 42. High: 48.
TUESDAY: Rain/snow mix. Slush potential. Winds: W 15-25. Wake-up: 32. High: 40.
WEDNESDAY: Cloudy, jackets not a bad idea. Winds: NW 10-15. Wake-up: 40. High: 46.
THURSDAY: More clouds than sun, brisk. Winds: NW 8-13. Wake-up: 37. High: 52.
FRIDAY: Clouds linger, late showers? Winds: N 8-13. Wake-up: 41. High: 52.
This Day in Weather History
April 10th
1977: A record high of 86 is set at Redwood Falls.
Average High/Low for Minneapolis
April 10th
Average High: 55F (Record: 88F set in 1977)
Average Low: 35F (Record: 18F set in 1962)
Record Rainfall: 1.33" set in 1883
Record Snowfall: 6.0" set in 1891
Sunrise/Sunset Times for Minneapolis
April 10th
Sunrise: 6:37am
Sunset: 7:52pm
Hours of Daylight: ~13 hours & 16 minutes
Daylight GAINED since yesterday: ~ 3 minutes & 3 seconds
Daylight GAINED since Winter Solstice (December 21st): ~ 4 hours & 52 minutes
Moon Phase for April 10th at Midnight
0.8 Days Before New Moon
What's in the Night Sky?
"Yesterday we talked about Coma Berenices, which you can see on April evenings. Its stars went from being part of Leo the Lion to being one of the 88 official constellations. Leo's stars are relatively bright, but the best part of Coma Berenices requires a dark sky to be seen. It's the beautiful Coma star cluster aka Melotte 111 or Collinder 256. This star cluster is what gives Coma Berenices its feathery (or hairlike) look. To find Coma Berenices and the Coma star cluster, first find Leo, on the right in the star chart above. Leo's brightest star – the sparkling blue-white gem Regulus – marks the bottom of an easy-to-see backward question mark of stars known (called The Sickle). A triangle of stars highlights the Lion's hindquarters and tail. A line drawn from Regulus to one of the stars in the triangle will take you to the Coma star cluster."
National High Temps Saturday
Here's the weather outlook on Saturday, which which mostly warmer than average temps across much of the nation. There will also be a chance of strong to severe storms in the Southeastern US on Saturday.
Record Highs Possible on Monday
National Forecast Map For Saturday
The weather map on Saturday shows widespread showers and storms in the eastern half of the nation, which could be strong to severe in the Southeastern US with locally heavy rains.
National Weather Outlook
Here's the weather outlook through Tuesday. Strong to severe storms will be possible in the Southeastern US with locally heavy rains.
Extended Precipitation Outlook
The extended precipitation outlook over the next 7 days shows areas of heavy rains across parts of the Gulf Coast States. There could also be some heavier precipitation from the Central Rockies to the Middle Mississippi Valley.
Extended Snowfall Outlook
Here's the extended snowfall outlook through the week ahead. Areas of heavy snowfall will be possible across parts of the Rockies and High Plains. There may also be some minor accumulations near the international border in North Dakota and Minnesota.
Climate Stories
"Carbon dioxide spikes to critical record, halfway to doubling preindustrial levels"
The concentration of the heat-trapping gas topped 420 parts per million, while the planet has warmed more than two degrees For the first time in recorded history, the concentration of atmospheric carbon dioxide, or CO2, was measured at more than 420 parts per million at the Mauna Loa Observatory on the Big Island of Hawaii. It's a disconcerting milestone in the human-induced warming of the planet, around the halfway point on our path toward doubling preindustrial CO2 levels. Pace of climate change shown in new report has humanity on 'suicidal' path, U.N. leader warns The research station, at an elevation of 11,135 feet on the summit of a picturesque volcano, has been monitoring the weather and chemistry of the atmosphere continuously since the 1950s. Its location allows it to sample some of the purest air available, providing scientists an untainted representation of how humans are irreversibly influencing climate systems.
See more from the Washington Post HERE:
"How do scientists know that Mauna Loa's volcanic emissions don't affect the carbon dioxide data collected there?"
"Mauna Loa is indeed an active volcano; it last erupted in 1950, 1975, and 1984. Between eruptions, it emits variable amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2) and sulfur dioxide (SO2) from fissures at the summit. The observatory is located on the northern slope of the mountain, 4 miles away from and 2,600 feet lower than the summit, which is 13,675 feet above sea level. Most of the time, the observatory experiences "baseline" conditions and measures clean air which has been over the Pacific Ocean for days or weeks. We know this because the CO2 analyzer usually gives a very steady reading which varies by less than 3/10 of a part per million (ppm) from hour to hour. These are the conditions we use to calculate the monthly averages that go into the famous 50-year graph of atmospheric CO2 concentration. We only detect volcanic CO2 from the Mauna Loa summit late at night at times when the regional winds are light and southerly. Under these conditions, a temperature inversion forms above the ground, and the volcanic emissions are trapped near the surface and travel down our side of the mountain slope. When the volcanic emissions arrive at the observatory, the CO2 analyzer readings increase by several parts per million, and the measured amounts become highly variable for periods of several minutes to a few hours. In the last decade, this has occurred on about 15% of nights between midnight and 6 a.m."
See more from Earth Observatory HERE:
"St. Vincent on red alert for 'imminent' volcanic eruption"
St. Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves on Thursday declared a disaster alert prompted by a change in the eruptive activity at the La Soufrière volcano, according to the country's National Emergency Management Organization. The island is on red alert, meaning an eruption is "imminent now," NEMO said. Evacuation orders are in place in about a dozen districts of St. Vincent, affecting roughly 6,000 to 7,000 people, a spokesperson for the University of the West Indies Seismic Research Centre, or UWI-SRC, told CNN. St. Vincent is the largest island of the St. Vincent and the Grenadines chain in the Caribbean. Scientists at the Belmont Observatory in St. Vincent observed a volcanic tremor on the island at about 3 a.m. local time, according to UWI-SRC. The first band of tremors was followed by five more throughout the day. This type of seismic signal is usually associated with movement of magma and fluids close to the surface, according to UWI-SRC. "Ash venting was also observed during the most recent tremor episode," the center reported on Facebook. The volcano has had five explosive eruptions — in 1718, 1812, 1814, 1902/03 and 1979 — according to the seismic research center.
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Storms battering the Midwest bring tornadoes, hail and strong winds
