Updraft® - Minnesota Weather News

Isolated thunderstorm, improving air quality Monday; hot all week

Hottest temps of the summer this week

fcst
Forecast for central Minnesota this week
National Weather Service

Southerly winds should improve air quality slowly through the day Monday. It’ll be hot with highs near 90 south and west. An isolated thunderstorm is possible later in the day.

Hot with isolated thunder Monday

We have a couple isolated thundershowers early Monday in southern Minnesota as warmer air pushes into Minnesota. There’s a chance of a couple more storms popping up late Monday with daytime heating.

Warmer air aloft may cap the atmosphere, however, making it too stable for widespread storms.

prec MON
Forecast precipitation 6 a.m. Monday through 1 a.m. Tuesday
College of DuPage weather lab

Any storms that do develop could produce some large hail or an isolated wind gust. There’s a marginal risk (level 1 of 5) of severe weather for late Monday afternoon and evening.

SPC Mon
Severe weather outlook for Monday
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Storm Prediction Center

We also have smoke in the skies again, but that should improve through the day. An air quality alert remains through 6 p.m. for central and northern Minnesota.

AQ
Air quality alerts through 6 p.m. Monday
National Weather Service

Southerly winds will slowly push in better air quality from south to north through the day.

winds MON
Forecast winds 6 a.m. Monday through 1 a.m. Tuesday
College of DuPage weather lab

Check the latest air quality conditions and forecasts from the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency:

Hottest temps of this summer this week

The biggest weather story of all this week will be the heat. A heat wave will bring highs of 90 degrees or hotter each day this week for most of southern and western Minnesota. Highs on Monday will be just near 90 with low 80s northeast.

mon hi 8a
Forecast highs Monday
National Weather Service

The one saving grace this week, is that dew points may not get into the oppressively humid 70s, at least not for extended periods, which would keep the heat index lower than it would otherwise be.

dews
Forecast dew points Monday through Thursday
College of DuPage weather lab

Still, the heat index will likely be between 100 and 105 Wednesday and Thursday across southern Minnesota, just below the excessive heat definition.

WED Heat
Forecast heat index late Wednesday afternoon
National Weather Service

Those peak high temperatures are likely to be in the upper 90s Wednesday and Thursday with the chance that some places could hit 100.

WED hi 8a
Forecast highs Wednesday
National Weather Service

Slightly cooler air arrives for the weekend, but we’ll still be well into the 80s for most.

sat hi
Forecast highs Saturday
National Weather Service

There are isolated thunder chances on and off during the week, especially late in the evenings or overnights but forecasting them will be a challenge with overall stable conditions and weak forcing. Overall, the drought will worsen for most of Minnesota.