Very Few Rain Chances - Heat To Make A Return

A very pleasant late July day is expected on Thursday in the Twin Cities, with clouds increasing throughout the day and highs only topping off in the mid-70s. We'll also see breezy northwest winds, gusting up to 25 mph.

Looking statewide, very pleasant temperatures are expected Thursday with highs in the 60s and 70s. These temperatures will be 5F to 15F degrees below average. We will watch sunnier skies becoming a bit cloudier across southern Minnesota during the day. Scattered showers are expected across northern Minnesota - mainly north of I-94 - during the day.

_______________________________________________

Friday will be another pleasant day in the Twin Cities as highs reach into the low 80s. The pattern takes a change into the weekend, with the upper 80s and maybe a spare 90F across the Twin Cities both Saturday and Sunday. The good news is dew points will only slowly creep upward, so it won't feel too sticky out (and it'll feel stickier Sunday vs. Saturday). A cold front late Sunday/Sunday Night brings a rain chance across the region and slightly cooler temperatures for Monday. However, after that point, it looks like we'll warm back up with a stretch of 90-degree days possible. Some models are trying to hint at 100F temps next Wednesday - I'm personally not ready to go out on that limb just yet, but something to keep an eye on.

_______________________________________________

While we only picked up 0.10" of rain Tuesday at MSP, a record 2.31" of rain fell in Hibbing. That broke the old record for the day of 1.05" set back in 1990.

_______________________________________________

_______________________________________________

Very Few Rain Chances - Heat To Make A Return
By D.J. Kayser, filling in for Paul Douglas

I don't know about you, but my yard is getting a little crispy out there. Then again, any water I'm using outside is going to the copious amounts of raspberries that are being harvested from the garden. At least I'm not having to spend money on gas for the lawn mower!

Even with 0.10" of rain Tuesday at MSP, we are 2.27" below average for July and 5.72" below average since June 1st. This is the second summer in a row where precipitation has been lacking over at least the first two-thirds of meteorological summer - and, in fact, we've seen less rain from June 1 to July 26 this year (2.30") vs. last year (2.85").

Unfortunately, the saying "don't forecast rain in a drought" might continue to (mostly) reign true. The next Twin Cities rain chance comes late Sunday with a cold front, but precipitation outlooks into early August show the odds of below-average precipitation across southern Minnesota.

_______________________________________________

D.J.'s Extended Twin Cities Forecast

THURSDAY: Northern MN rain. Twin Cities sun/cloud mix. Breezy. Wake up 62. High 77. Chance of precipitation 10%. Wind NW 10-20 mph.

FRIDAY: Pleasant for late July. Passing clouds. Wake up 59. High 80. Chance of precipitation 0%. Wind NW 5-10 mph.

SATURDAY: Sunny and warm. Wake up 61. High 88. Chance of precipitation 0%. Wind SW 5-15 mph.

MONDAY: Sunny and slightly cooler. Wake up 69. High 85. Chance of precipitation 10%. Wind NW 5-10 mph.

TUESDAY: Warmth starts to return. Wake up 67. High 89. Chance of precipitation 10%. Wind SE 5-15 mph.

WEDNESDAY: Hot with sticky sunshine. Wake up 73. High 96. Chance of precipitation 10%. Wind SE 5-15 mph.

_______________________________________________

Minneapolis Weather Almanac And Sun Data
July 28th

*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 6 AM?: August 3rd (6:00 AM)
*When Does The Sun Start Setting At/Before 8:30 PM?: August 8th (8:29 PM)

_______________________________________________

This Day in Weather History
July 28th

1987: Heavy rain falls at La Crosse, WI, where 5 inches are recorded.

_______________________________________________

Very heavy rain could fall through the end of the week from the Southwest to the Ohio Valley and Appalachians, where at least three inches of rain could fall.

_______________________________________________

How Is Climate Change Affecting Floods?

More from the New York Times: "Floods can surge all year round, in every region of the world. But discerning the relationship between any given flood and climate change is no small feat, experts say, made difficult by limited historical records, particularly for the most extreme floods, which occur infrequently. It can be tempting to attribute all floods and other extreme events to the forces of warming planet. But weather is not climate, even though weather can be affected by climate. For example, scientists are confident that climate change makes unusually hot days more common. They're not as sure that climate change is making tornadoes more severe."

Common medications may increase the dangers of heat waves

Blackouts in China as heatwave pushes electricity usage to record levels

More from The Guardian: "A long-running heatwave in China has pushed electricity usage to record levels in some areas and led to blackouts, with warnings that the high temperatures are expected to continue for at least another week. More than 300 cities were forecast to reach temperatures above 35C on Tuesday. China Southern Power Grid Company said Monday's usage had surpassed last year's peak load by 3%. The Guangdong province power grid also hit a record high, reaching 142m kilowatts, an increase of 4.89% over last year's peak load. Blackouts were reported in the provincial capital, Guangzhou, which has recorded a full week of maximum temperatures above 37C, including highs of 40C on Sunday and Monday."

_______________________________________________

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).

- D.J. Kayser