Updraft® - Minnesota Weather News

What September? July-level heat, smoky skies persist

The calendar says mid-September. But the weather maps scream July across the Upper Midwest.

The atmospheric reason for our extended summer soiree? The jet stream remains on Canadian vacation north of the border this week. That puts a warm bubble of air across the U.S.

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NOAA

Unseasonably warm

The average high temperature in the Twin Cities this week? 73 degrees. Highs in the Red River Valley push 90 again tomorrow. The Twin Cities and most of Minnesota basks in the mid and upper 80s. As usual, cooler by the (big) lake. Summery weather is in no hurry to fly south this year.

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NOAA

Here are the Twin Cities numbers this week. Look for a temperature correction by Sunday.

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NOAA via Weather Bell

Shower chances

Dry, warm weather continues Wednesday. A cool front works closer to Minnesota later this week. That boosts spotty showers and T-Storm coverage. The best chances for rain arrive this weekend.

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NOAA GFS via tropical tidbits.

Hopefully the GFS timing of Saturday night rain pans out. That may still leave many dry hour Saturday. A fresh northwest breeze blows in starting Sunday.

Smoky skies persist

Welcome to yet another day of white-tinted skies across Minnesota.

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Sun shines through a white-tinted smoky sky at the Huttner Weather Lab Tuesday. Image: Paul Huttner/MPR News

You can thank western wildfires once again for the milky white paste overhead. NOAA's smoke mapping product shows a sizable smoke plume drifting across the USA and southern Canada.

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NOAA

Mix down

Some of the smoke particles may have mixed down to ground level. Note the elevated readings via the MPCA today.

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Minnesota Pollution Control Agency

I can't recall a summer when I've observed more smoky sky days. It would be nice to return to the Land of Sky Blue Waters.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1yHsoW6CTjM