A Touch Cooler Monday - Soggy Pattern Returns Mid Week

Heavy Rain Since June

If there has been one story that has stuck out the past few months, it's been the rounds of heavy rain across the region. From June 1 - September 17, the Twin Cities has received 19.97" of rain. That is the ninth largest total during that time period in the history of Twin Cities record keeping (largest was 25.24" in 1997). Some parts of southeast Minnesota have picked up over two feet of rain since June 1st.

The entire state has seen above average precipitation for that same time period (since June 1), with some areas of southeast Minnesota a good 9-15" above average. It looks like we'll be able to add to those totals over the next week - more on that in a moment.

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Supernaturally Soggy Pattern Hangs On This Week
By Paul Douglas

Local landscaping guru Mike Henslin asked me a thoughtful question: "Do wet summers increase the odds of a wet winter?" I sure hope not. And I have not seen a scientific link between soggy summers and snowfall amounts the following winter.

An El Nino warm phase in the Pacific correlates with slightly milder winters for Minnesota. Last winter's warmth was influenced by El Nino, but the La Nina cool phase predicted for the upcoming winter has fizzled. Which means flip a coin, but it probably won't be as mellow and Kansas City-like as last winter. Just a gut feel. Could be nausea.

Extreme drought is setting in across parts of New England, while here at home the monsoon rains just won't quit. Another 2-3 inches of rain may fall between Wednesday and Sunday of next week. A warm frontal boundary sparks heavy T-storms Wednesday; a second frontal boundary temporarily stalls over Minnesota next weekend, prolonging prodigious puddles.

We finally dry out and cool off next week. No frost or flurries thru the end of September.

Or is it still June? The atmosphere remains very confused.

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Extended Forecast for Minneapolis

MONDAY: Clouds, spotty shower. High 77. Low 55. Chance of rain 40%. Wind W 8-13 mph.
TUESDAY: Patchy clouds, stray PM shower. High 78. Low 63. Chance of rain 30%. Wind S 3-8 mph.
WEDNESDAY: T-storms, locally heavy rain. High 80. Low 61. Chance of rain 70%. Wind S 10-15 mph.
THURSDAY: Showers taper, gradual clearing. High 70. Low 58. Chance of rain 30%. Wind NE 8-13 mph.
FRIDAY: Dry start, more T-storms arrive late. High 73. Low 59. Chance of rain 60%. Wind E 10-15 mph.
SATURDAY: Sticky with T-storms, some heavy. High 76. Low 57. Chance of rain 70%. Wind SE 10-20 mph.
SUNDAY: Front stalls, more heavy T-storms. High 69. Low 55. Chance of rain 80%. Wind W 10-15 mph.

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This Day in Weather History
September 19th

1998: 1 to 1 3/4 inch hail falls in Meeker, Wright, Todd, and Wilkin Counties. Winds were also estimated over 50 knots / 58 miles per hour.
1980: Golfball to baseball sized hail hits St. Paul. One company has 75 to 95 percent of the glass in their greenhouses smashed.

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Average Temperatures & Precipitation for Minneapolis
September 19th

Average High: 70F (Record: 94F set in 1895)
Average Low: 51F (Record: 33F set in 1991)
Average Precipitation: 0.09" (Record: 2.98" set in 1907)
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Sunrise/Sunset Times for Minneapolis
September 19th

Sunrise: 6:57 AM
Sunset: 7:15 PM
*Length Of Day: 12 hours, 18 minutes and 3 seconds
*Daylight Lost Since Yesterday: ~3 minutes and 6 seconds

*Next Sunrise That Is At/After 7 AM: September 21st (7:00 am)
*Next Sunset That Is Before 7 PM: September 28th (6:58 pm)

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Minnesota Weather Outlook

Expected Highs Monday.
Highs will be a touch cooler Monday across the state behind a cold front, with mid 70s expected in the Twin Cities. Parts of northern Minnesota will be unlikely to get out of the 60s for highs once again.

Temperatures will continue to remain warm over the next week in southern Minnesota, with highs in the 70s likely just about every day. We're still watching the last week of the month for a potential cool down across the region - if the models are right, there could potentially be a number of days with highs in the 50s and 60s during that time frame in the Twin Cities.

Rain chances continue to be high as we head toward the middle of the week across the region, with periods of showers and storms possible. Rainfall totals could top 2" here in the Twin Cities by the end of next weekend.

Through next Sunday morning, the Weather Prediction Center has the heaviest rain falling across parts of southern and central Minnesota - including here in the Twin Cities. The potential exists for 2-4"+ of rain over the next seven days.

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National Weather Stories

 

Storms will be possible Monday along the East Coast and Gulf Coast along a cold front. A second system will spark a storm chance across the Great Lakes. Tropical moisture due to Paine in the Pacific will be surging north, bringing a chance of storms to parts of the Southwest. A few showers will be possible from South Dakota through Idaho, meanwhile a weak front could bring some rain to the Pacific Northwest.

Highs will range from the 60s and 70s across the northern tier of states to the 90s and even some 100s across the south.

Highs will once again be 5-10 degrees below average in parts of the Northwest Monday. Some of the warmest weather (vs. average) will be from the Southern Plains through the Great Lakes, with highs 5-15 degrees above average.

iPhone 7 Has A Barometric Vent

Photo: iFixit

Apparently Apple has put a barometric vent in the new iPhones in the space where the headphone jack used to be. What does that mean? More from The Verge: "Apparently adding all the waterproofing to the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus meant that it was more of a sealed box, and so to be able to have an accurate and working barometer, Apple used that space. The barometer is the thing that allows a phone to measure altitude, and Apple points out that on the iPhone 7 it can measure even minor changes like climbing a flight of stairs."

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Thanks for checking in and have a great Monday! Don't forget you can follow me on Twitter (@dkayserwx) or on Facebook (Meteorologist D.J. Kayser)!

 - D.J. Kayser