Hot, dry weather and wildfire smoke are elevating ground-level ozone across most of Minnesota today.

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We’ll have a bit of lingering instability Friday with otherwise decreasing clouds. The weekend looks hot and humid. Cooler temperatures return later next week. 

Decreasing clouds Friday; steamy weekend 

Much of central and northwestern Minnesota saw rainfall over the past 24 hours. The highest values were around Alexandria and Osakis where 2.3 inches fell Thursday. 

A stubborn area of showers held together and even surprised the Twin Cities area with one-tenth to three-tenths of an inch of rain for a couple of hours Thursday afternoon before mostly fizzling out before reaching Wisconsin.

We have some lingering scattered showers and a couple thunderstorms early Friday morning. Those may persist on and off through the morning before fizzling out late morning-midday. Clouds will then decrease through the day Friday. 

Highs Friday will be near 80 with low to mid-80s west. Dew points will also be muggier, back into the 60s. 

The last full weekend of August will be a hot one. Highs Saturday will be well into the 80s statewide with partly cloudy skies and muggy air. 

Sunday will be hotter, with even higher dew points, potentially in the 70s. This will make 90 degrees feel like 100 degrees Sunday afternoon.

In addition to the near 90 degree temperatures, dew points will be some of the highest we’ve seen all summer.

Sunday and Monday could see dew points in the mid to even upper 70s for some. That could equate to heat index values of 100 degrees or more in the southern half of the state Sunday and Monday afternoons. 

The first of two cool fronts moves through Monday, potentially touching off some thunder. The best chance will be northwest Minnesota late Sunday into Sunday night. 

Whatever develops could hold together and drift into central Minnesota late Sunday night into early Monday. Storms could develop late Monday overnight into Tuesday in central and southern Minnesota.

We’ll also need to watch the potential for any strong to severe storms. The risk will be primarily in northwestern Minnesota late Sunday.

The risk of any potential severe weather will then be in central and southern Minnesota into western Wisconsin.

A second cool front will drop temperatures to slightly below-normal levels later next week. Highs will be mostly in the 70s south to 60s north by Friday into the Labor Day weekend.

Sven Sundgaard

Author

We’ll have a bit of lingering instability Friday with otherwise decreasing clouds. The weekend looks hot and humid. Cooler temperatures return later next week. 


Lingering scattered morning showers Friday; hot, steamy weekend

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