Not as hot this weekend; best thunderstorm chances shift south on Saturday
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It was way too hot Friday afternoon.
The official Twin Cities temperature at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport hit 99 degrees Friday:
We were just one degree from a triple-digit high temperature. The dew point temperature was 72 degrees, so our heat index was 108 degrees.
It was a good afternoon to take it easy.
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Here are some peak heat index values reported by the NWS through mid afternoon:
PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TWIN CITIES/CHANHASSEN MN
318 PM CDT FRI JUN 29 2018
...HIGHEST HEAT INDICES AS OF 3:15 PM...
LOCATION TEMP TIME/DATE PROVIDER
SOUTH ST. PAUL 1WSW 112 F 0231 PM 06/29 MNDOT
LAKE ELMO AP 110 F 0243 PM 06/29 AWOS
FARIBAULT 1SSW 110 F 0114 PM 06/29 AWS
ALBERTVILLE 2ESE 110 F 0239 PM 06/29 AWS
CAMBRIDGE AP 109 F 0255 PM 06/29 AWOS
LAKEVILLE AP 109 F 0255 PM 06/29 AWOS
SILVER LAKE 3E 109 F 0235 PM 06/29 MNDOT
FOLEY 6WSW 109 F 0210 PM 06/29 MNDOT
RED WING 4W 109 F 0235 PM 06/29 MNDOT
PRINCETON AP 109 F 0216 PM 06/29 AWOS
RED WING AP 109 F 0255 PM 06/29 AWOS
AUGUSTA 1NW 108 F 0305 PM 06/29 RAWS
ISLE 1WSW 108 F 0220 PM 06/29 AWS
WYOMING 6WSW 107 F 1206 PM 06/29 RAWS
EAU CLAIRIE 2NE 107 F 0244 PM 06/29 AWS
ST. LOUIS PARK 2ESE 107 F 0209 PM 06/29 AWS
FARIBAULT AP 107 F 0235 PM 06/29 AWOS
GRANITE FALLS AP 107 F 0255 PM 06/29 AWOS
LADYSMITH 2SW 107 F 0305 PM 06/29 RAWS
LINO LAKES 2W 107 F 0244 PM 06/29 AWS
MAPLE LAKE AP 107 F 0255 PM 06/29 AWOS
NEW GERMANY 1NW 107 F 0230 PM 06/29 MNDOT
MORTON 107 F 0235 PM 06/29 MNDOT
MADELIA 3ENE 107 F 0240 PM 06/29 MNDOT
SKYLINE 107 F 0145 PM 06/29 MNDOT
ST. PAUL 1NNE 107 F 0245 PM 06/29 MNDOT
MINNEAPOLIS-ST. PAUL AP 107 F 0253 PM 06/29 ASOS
STANTON AP 107 F 0215 PM 06/29 AWOS
WACONIA 1WSW 107 F 0214 PM 06/29 AWS
BLAINE AP 106 F 0255 PM 06/29 AWOS
APPLE VALLEY 2WSW 106 F 0210 PM 06/29 AWS
CHAMPLIN 2ESE 106 F 0239 PM 06/29 AWS
SANTIAGO 3E 106 F 0220 PM 06/29 RAWS
EAU CLAIRE AP 106 F 0256 PM 06/29 ASOS
EDEN PRAIRIE AP 106 F 0253 PM 06/29 ASOS
FARMINGTON 2ESE 106 F 0249 PM 06/29 AWS
HUTCHINSON AP 106 F 0235 PM 06/29 AWOS
MORA 1ENE 106 F 0308 PM 06/29 RAWS
LE CENTER 106 F 0240 PM 06/29 AWS
BLUE EARTH 2NW 106 F 0245 PM 06/29 MNDOT
CLEARWATER 1SE 106 F 0215 PM 06/29 MNDOT
MAYER 1NE 106 F 0240 PM 06/29 MNDOT
OSCEOLA AP 106 F 0255 PM 06/29 AWOS
OSCEOLA 1NNE 106 F 0240 PM 06/29 AWS
ST. PAUL DWTN AP 106 F 0253 PM 06/29 ASOS
Slightly higher heat index values were reached in many spots before the afternoon was over.
Excessive heat warnings expire at 10 p.m. this Friday evening for the Twin Cities metro area and much of the southern half of Minnesota, plus portions of western Wisconsin.
Parts of southeastern Minnesota will be in a heat advisory overnight Friday night through Saturday afternoon.
Cooler weekend temps
Saturday highs will drop back to the upper 80s in the Twin Cities metro area. The northwestern half of Minnesota will see highs in the upper 70s, with mostly 80s in the southeastern half of our favorite state. Parts of far southeastern Minnesota could reach the lower 90s.
On Sunday, most of northern Minnesota will top out in the upper 70s, with lower 80s in the central and south:
Twin Cities metro are highs are expected to reach the mid 80s Monday, followed by upper 80s Tuesday and around 90 on the 4th of July.
Thunderstorm chances
Northern and central Minnesota have the best chance of thunderstorms overnight Friday night and early Saturday morning. A few severe thunderstorms will be possible.
Updated weather information can be heard on the Minnesota Public Radio Network, and updates are also posted on the MPR News live weather blog.
The Twin Cities metro area could see an isolated strong thunderstorm late in the overnight hours and early Saturday.
The best chance of some periods of thunderstorms in the Twin Cities metro area and southern Minnesota will be Saturday afternoon and Saturday night.
Some of those thunderstorms could be severe.
The Storm Prediction Center of the National Weather Service shows a marginal risk of severe weather in the metro area Saturday and Saturday night, with a slight risk in southeastern Minnesota:
Marginal risk means that an isolated severe thunderstorm is possible, slight risk means that scattered severe storms are possible:
The metro area and southern Minnesota could also see some scattered showers and thunderstorms on Sunday.
Friday morning severe thunderstorms
The Minnesota State Climatology Office has a nice recap of the severe thunderstorms that downed trees and power lines in parts of northern Minnesota early on Friday.
Their summary includes the following:
... by early morning on the 29th, a long-lived thunderstorm complex with damaging winds raced into northwestern Minnesota at speeds of up to 70 mph. The accelerating storms produced 55-70 mph winds and a long swath of tree, power line, and even minor structural damage. The hardest hit areas were near Bemidji and Kelliher. Area radars showed that the system had a classical “bow echo” appearance, with the storms oriented along a curved or bulging line. This is a common appearance for severe thunderstorms that produce damaging winds.
Another interesting feature of this second storm system was its longevity, and especially the amount of time it spent producing strong winds. The complex of storms had originated in east-central Montana Thursday evening, and then tracked across North Dakota before getting to Minnesota. Sensors from west to east across North Dakota indicate the storms produced winds of 50-80 mph for several consecutive hours before entering Minnesota. Long-lasting, wind damage-producing thunderstorm complexes of this type are called “derechos” (pronounced “deh-RAY-cho”), and are considered to be a rare class of severe thunderstorms.
Their post includes an impressive radar replay of the severe thunderstorms that raced across northern Minnesota, as well as numerous detailed severe storm reports.
You can hear my live weather updates on Minnesota Public Radio at 7:35 a.m., 9:35 a.m. and 4:35 p.m. this weekend.