Cooler, Breezy Sunday
A very pleasant but breezy day is on tap for the last Sunday of the month in the metro, with morning temperatures in the upper 50s and low 60s and high climbing to the mid-70s. The skies will be mostly sunny.
While it will be sunny here across central and southern Minnesota, we will watch for occasional passing showers and storms up across northern areas of the state - but by no means will it be an all-day washout. Cooler than average temperatures are expected across the state on Sunday, with highs in the 60s in northern Minnesota and in the 70s elsewhere.
It will be a blustery day across the state, with strong northwest winds gusting up to 30 mph in some locations. The strongest winds in the metro are expected during the midday and afternoon hours.
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Warming Up Again This Week
The reprieve from the heat only lasts one day, as highs by Monday will be back around average in the low 80s. They'll continue to climb through the middle of the week reaching the upper 80s for Wednesday and potentially Thursday (with an off-chance shot at 90F on Wednesday as well) before a cool front moves through dropping temperatures back to around 80F for Friday. Rain chances are somewhat minimal this week - while we could see some isolated showers and storms on Tuesday (mainly into Wisconsin), the best chance of rain will be Thursday with the passing cold front.
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Windy & Cooler Sunday But Heat Returns This Week
By D.J. Kayser, filling in for Paul Douglas
Abnormally dry conditions have settled back into the metro according to the latest drought monitor released Thursday. While we did see about a quarter to half-inch of rain the past few days in the metro, NASA's SPoRT soil moisture analysis still shows below-average topsoil moisture across southern Minnesota.
Meanwhile, areas from Ottertail to the Brainerd Lakes to St. Cloud got hammered by heavy rain and flooding. Two-day rain totals easily exceeded 3-5", with a rain gauge receiving at least 11" of rain through Thursday night near Cushing.
A blustery Sunday is on tap with the coolest highs since the first week of this month in the mid-70s. Temperatures start climbing upward for the work week with the upper 80s expected (and potentially a shot at 90F) by Wednesday and Thursday.
Scattered mid-week rain chances exist, with the highest odds being Thursday as a cold front passes through. That'll knock highs back to around 80F for the first part of the July 4th weekend, but mid to upper 80s look to return for Independence Day.
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D.J.'s Extended Twin Cities Forecast
SUNDAY: Blustery and sunny. Wake up 60. High 75. Chance of precipitation 0%. Wind NW 10-20 mph.
MONDAY: Passing afternoon clouds. Wake up 57. High 82. Chance of precipitation 0%. Wind W 5-10 mph.
TUESDAY: Isolated storm - higher chances in WI. Wake up 64. High 84. Chance of precipitation 30%. Wind W 10 mph.
WEDNESDAY: AM sun, PM clouds. Warmer. Wake up 59. High 87. Chance of precipitation 20%. Wind SE 5-15 mph.
THURSDAY: Cloudy, some storms. A touch humid. Wake up 73. High 87. Chance of precipitation 50%. Wind SW 10-20 mph.
FRIDAY: Pleasant to begin July. Wake up 63. High 79. Chance of precipitation 10%. Wind N 5-10 mph.
SATURDAY: Sun/cloud mix. Isolated storm? Wake up 60. High 80. Chance of precipitation 20%. Wind NW 5-10 mph.
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Minneapolis Weather Almanac And Sun Data
June 26th
*Length Of Day: 15 hours, 35 minutes, and 46 seconds
*Daylight LOST Since Yesterday: 21 seconds
*When Do We Drop Below 15 Hours Of Daylight?: July 24 (14 hours, 58 minutes, 52 seconds)
*When Does The Sun Start Rising At/After 6 AM?: August 3rd (6:00 AM)
*Latest Sunset?: June 20 - July 2 (9:03 PM)
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This Day in Weather History
June 26th
1982: Cold air moves into northern Minnesota. Kulger Township dips to 31 degrees. Duluth registers 36.
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National Weather Forecast
On Sunday, we will watch shower and storm activity across the Southwest and Mid-Atlantic, as well as from the Great Lakes into the Central Plains and the Southwest.
The heaviest rain through Monday will be across portions of the Southwest, where monsoonal moisture could lead to 3"+ of rain for some locations. Heavier rain will also be possible across portions of Florida and the Gulf Coast.
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Minnesota courts hear challenges to use of agricultural land for solar projects
More from Energy News Network: "Recent state appeals court rulings are starting to shed light on how far Minnesota counties can go to limit solar development on agricultural land. The Minnesota Court of Appeals recently ruled in three cases involving rural counties that rejected developers' plans to build community solar farms. The court has rejected denials by McLeod County twice in the past year, though last month it affirmed Stearns County's right to deny a solar project. The cases reflect a growing tension between the solar industry and rural county officials who fear solar will diminish property values, destroy agricultural landscapes and potentially harm livestock."
Congress Quietly Backed An Ambitious Climate Project: Sending CO2 To The Ocean Floor
More from the Huffington Post: "As the world races to head off worst-case climate change scenarios, there has been increasing focus on developing and advancing technologies to suck planet-warming carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Among the logistical hurdles with the technology, called carbon capture and storage, or CCS, is where to store the massive amounts of carbon gas underground once it's been sequestered. One proven solution: the bottom of the ocean. Congress recently helped to push that possibility forward. The $1.2 trillion infrastructure package that Congress passed and President Joe Biden signed into law late last year is expected to jumpstart U.S. carbon capture and storage. Along with earmarking more than $12 billion to advance CCS technologies, the law tasked federal regulators with creating a framework for companies to lease offshore areas and pump CO₂ into the ocean floor, thereby preventing it from reaching the atmosphere and further heating the planet."
How Batteries at Charging Locations Could Charge Every EV Faster
More from CNET: "Charging infrastructure may be more consequential to the adoption of electric cars than innovation in the cars themselves: Having more places to charge more quickly can play prominently in drivers' experience with and perception of EVs. But creating a vast network of plentiful fast charging isn't a trivial effort, as EV haters like to point out: It's a big construction project almost in the realm of the interstate highway system that may exceed the available power in many areas, no matter how much cable you run or chargers you connect to it."
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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
