Weather conditions will be unsettled through the week ahead with off-and-on thunderstorm chances. The best chance of rain will be later this week and into the weekend ahead, when a bulk of the precipitation is expected.

Here's the total rainfall potential through next weekend, which shows the potential of up to 1" or more of rainfall across the northern half of the state. Some spots in western Minnesota could get close to 1.50".

The weather outlook for the Twin Cities on Monday, May 8th looks mostly dry throughout much of the day, but there could be a few isolated t-showers in the afternoon. Highs will warm to near 70F, which will be close to or slightly above average for this time of the year.

Temps on Monday will be closer to average in the Twin Cities with highs warming into the mid/upper 60s. However, readings across northern Minnesota will be a little cooler than average for this time of the year. There could be an isolated shower or two across parts of the region with a rumble of thunder.

The hourly temps through the day Monday shows temps starting in the mid 50s in the morning and warming into the mid/upper 60s by the afternoon. There will be a mix of sun and clouds through the day with an isolated t-shower later in the day.

The 5 day temperature outlook for the Twin Cities looks quite a bit warmer than it was at the start of the month with highs warming into the 70s to near 80F.

The week ahead will be warmer than average with spotty showers and thunderstorms, especially later in the week when a bigger wave of energy enters the Upper Midwest. The system late week will bring more widely scattered thunderstorm chances to the Upper Midwest, including closer to home. Stay tuned...

Weather conditions across the Central US during the 2nd week of May will be a little unsettled with areas of showers and thunderstorms developing. Areas of locally heavy rainfall will be possible along with a few strong to severe storms.

According to NOAA's Climate Prediction Center, the 8 to 14 day temperature outlook shows warmer-than-average temperatures settling in across the northwestern part of the nation. Meanwhile, it'll be a little cooler across the Southern US and the Great Lakes.

According to NOAA's Climate Prediction Center, the 8 to 14 Day precipitation outlook shows more active weather possible across the Southern US and especially across the Southwest. Meanwhile, things look a little quieter across the Midwest.

It may be hard putting the genie back in the bottle. "Checking to see which days this week are best for staining the deck" my wife mumbled, loading up my previous company's weather app. You know I'm sitting right here. "Yeah, but the app doesn't talk back or judge me" she said, scrolling furiously. Good point. Apps have their place, but they rely on only 1 model and rarely do well with complicated patterns. I hope the human element never goes away, but some days I wonder.

We salvaged a terrific Sunday and although no widespread, prolonged rain is likely through Friday, a weak boundary sparks a few hit-or-miss thundershowers into midweek, but most of the time will be dry (for deck staining). What can go wrong?

Pack waterproof jackets for Saturday's Minnesota Fishing Opener with 70s southern lakes, maybe 50s and 60s up north.

MONDAY: Mild sun, late T-storms. Winds: NE 7-12. High: 70.

MONDAY NIGHT: Mostly cloudy. Chance of t-storms. Winds: E 5-10. Low: 53.

TUESDAY: Partly sunny, isolated shower. Winds: SE 7-12. High: 73.

WEDNESDAY: Warm sun, few T-storms north. Winds: SE 7-12. Wake-up: 55. High 78.

FRIDAY: Sunshine, lingers, quite humid. Winds: SE 10-20. Wake-up: 62. High 82.

SATURDAY: Showers & T-storms for Fishing Opener. Winds: SW 10-20. Wake-up: 60. High: 74.

SUNDAY: Clearing skies, cooler breeze. Winds: NE 10-20. Wake-up: 50. High: 70.

May 8th

1924: A snowstorm brings up to 4 inches to parts of Minnesota. Minneapolis sees a half inch of snow with St. Paul picking up an inch. Up to 50 mph winds accompany the snow.

Average High: 66F (Record: 90F set in 1874)

Average Low: 47F (Record: 28F set in 1960)

Record Rainfall: 1.73" set in 1872

Record Snowfall: 0.5" set in 1923

May 8th

Sunset: 8:26pm

Hours of Daylight: ~14 hours & 33 minutes

Daylight GAINED since yesterday: +2 Minutes & 32 Seconds

Daylight GAINED since Winter Solstice (December 21st): ~ 5 hour & 47 minutes

3.3 Day Before Last Quarter

The weather outlook on Monday will be a little unsettled across the Central US, where a few strong to severe storms will be possible. We'll also see a few heavier pockets of rain here and there.

The week ahead will be a little unsettled across parts of the Central US with isolated strong to severe storms and locally heavy rainfall. There will still be area of snow across the high elevations in the northern Rockies.

According to NOAA's Weather Prediction Center, the extended precipitation outlook shows heavier precipitation across parts of the Central US and especially across Texas, where several inches of rain will be possible.

According to the ECMWF (European model), there could still be a little snow across the high elevations in the Rockies and the Western US.

"The Sun has recently experienced an uptick in activity, with lots of sunspots accompanied by flares, coronal mass ejections, and visible auroras — but experts still expect a mild solar cycle. The Sun has been very active lately. Since the solar cycle picked up steam in May last year the number of sunspots and solar flares has constantly increased until it suddenly ramped up between December 2022 and January 2023. On April 21st, a coronal mass ejection propelled a pulse of plasma — super-heated magnetized gas — toward Earth, causing a geomagnetic storm that ranked at level 4 in the 5-degree scale used by the U.S National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The storm treated skygazers to bright auroras that extended as far south as New Mexico in the U.S, or France and Germany in Europe. This peak in solar activity has prompted many to wonder if the current solar cycle is becoming more active than scientists had predicted."

"JAMIE BEARD WAS worried. She was at the wheel of a black Toyota Prius, multitasking at 80 mph down the Hardy Toll Road out of George Bush Intercontinental Airport. Just before picking me up, she had been interviewed for a national TV news show. Now, swerving through lanes, she was running through various shit scenarios: What if something she said pisses off one of the oil and gas executives she had come to adore, or one of her fellow climate activists? As she was ruminating and driving, a Ford F-150 with tires higher than the Prius is tall squeezed by us in the fast lane, so close that Jamie gripped the wheel tight to keep the little car steady. One side of her hair was buzz-cut; the other was a bob. It, like the rest of her, was steady and roiling at the same time. "Welcome to Texas," she hollered. A grin spread across the small oval face that makes her look more 24 than 44, and she turned her attention to our destination: "Just wait until you see the Woodlands. The cops patrol the streets on white horses!"

See more from Wired HERE:

"As winds and waves from Typhoon Merbok devastated communities along the coast of Western Alaska in 2022, Reppi Swan Sr.'s phone began to ring at Kivalina, a barrier island 80 miles above the Arctic Circle. A neighboring family had lost 3 feet of land to the rumbling lagoon, and their home was now sitting just 6 feet from the angry water's edge. Reppi called his brother Joe Swan Jr. and quickly slid into his insulated rain gear. As a volunteer first responder, Reppi plans for emergencies like this. He and his wife, Dolly, had been patrolling the island for dangerous erosion every few hours during the storm. To prepare, he had already inspected the city's heavy equipment and located a pile of boulders left over from a recent construction project. Working through the rain, Reppi delivered boulders to the threatened home. With their cousin Carl Swan serving as a spotter, Joe carefully arranged the boulders with a backhoe to stabilize the bank. It would hold at least until the storm subsided."

See more from The Conversation HERE: