Updraft® - Minnesota Weather News

Emerging flash flood threat early next week?

Let's start with the good weather news. I am happy to report we enjoy blissfully warm and dry summer weather for the rest of this week. The short term benefits? Soggy farm fields can dry a little more, swollen lakes and rivers can ease up a bit, and all of us can bake in some welcome warm late May sunshine.

Maybe we'll even melt a few more late season icebergs on Lake Superior?

Cutting to the forecast chase, here's the quick outlook for the rest of the week.

Where's the nearest beach?

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Weatherspark

Our Chamber of Commerce forecast lasts into at least early Saturday. That's when a slow moving frontal system edges toward western Minnesota, sparking scattered showers and storms. Her's the 48 hour surface forecast map loop from NOAA's Weather Prediction Center.

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NOAA

By Sunday (June 1) it looks like the June Monsoon may be visiting Minnesota this year, as a soggy warm front bubbles north. Here's the Global Forecast System notion low pressure in South Dakota and heavy rainfall "bull's eye's" over Minnesota by Monday.

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NOAA

Slow moving warm fronts in June are notorious for dumping heavy rainfall totals in the Upper Midwest. It's almost impossible to gauge the precise locations and magnitude of multi-inch rainfall days in advance like this, but the general synoptic set up looks favorable for some gully washers Sunday and Monday.

The latest NOAA 7-day rainfall output gives you the idea. The potential is there for some rainfall of 3 to 4 inches or more Sunday and Monday.

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NOAA

Here's the GFS rainfall forecast for Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. Again, just a loose estimate that indicates the potential for heavy rains.

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Iowa State University

Weather Tip: Time to check and clean the Weather Lab gutters and downspouts once again.