Minnesota WeatherTalk

Preliminary Climate Summary for September of 2024: Warm and dry are the succinct words for this September in Minnesota. This will be the first time in history that the statewide average September temperature will exceed 64°F, surpassing the previous warmest September of 2015 (63.8°F). Most climate stations will report an average monthly temperature that is 5°F to 8°F above normal. Counties of northwestern and north-central Minnesota were nearly 9°F warmer than normal. Extremes were 92°F at Granite Falls (Yellow Medicine County) on the 16th and 26°F at Ely (St Louis County) on the 7th. Within the state climate station network, there were 48 record daily high temperatures and 73 record daily warming minimum temperatures. Many nighttime temperatures remained in the 60s F, and even a few nights never went below 70°F at places like Milan (Chippewa County) and Alexandria (Douglas County). September was drier than normal in almost all areas of Minnesota, except for the far northern sec...

Warm and Dry September Continues: The first 19 days of September have brought extraordinary warmth to the state. The average statewide temperature for this period is the 3rd warmest in history, trailing only 1931 and 1897. Most climate stations are reporting an average monthly temperature so far that is 5° to 8°F above normal. Many climate stations have reported 14-15 days with daytime temperatures in the 80s F, while climate stations in Yellow Medicine, Redwood, Lyon, and Lac Qui Parle Counties have reported 90°F. In addition, many nights have remained warm, with low temperatures in the 60s F. Dr. Kenny Blumenfeld of the Minnesota State Climatology Office offered more insights on these warm temperatures in a commentary posted on their web site this week. Over the last 20 days the statewide average rainfall has been less than a quarter of an inch, while many individual climate stations have reported less than a tenth of an inch. Parts of northern Minnesota received significant r...

A Very Dry Two Weeks: It has been a very wet year across the state of Minnesota, with many climate stations already reporting total precipitation for the year-to-date that exceeds their annual normal amount. So, the recent two-week dry period (nearly total absence of significant rainfall) has been quite unusual. In fact, statewide statistics show it has been the second driest two-week period or longer for the year so far. Statewide average precipitation low points in 2024: January 19-February 7 average of 0.06 inches (14 days) August 31-September 13 average of 0/08 inches (20 days) February 16-March 19 average of 0.16 inches (33 days) In addition, some of the lowest values of afternoon relative humidity for the growing season have been measured this week with readings in the 25 to 37 percent range. As a result, many gardens around the state have required some watering this week, along with other landscapes like golf courses. It appears that this situation will change significantly ...

Strong Warming Trend in September: Despite a rather cool, dry start to this month of September, it is worth noting what a strong warming trend has been measured over the last 30 Septembers in Minnesota. Since 1993 the average September temperature on a statewide basis has increased over 3.5°F. Further, 24 of the last 30 Septembers have been warmer than normal. September of 2015 was the warmest in state history, at 7°F above normal, and September of 2023 (last year) was the second warmest at 6.7°F above normal. September rainfall has been highly variable since 1993 with most years either being very dry or very wet, and very few years being near average. For example, in both 2010 and 2019 the statewide average rainfall in September was over 6 inches, while in 2012 it was just 0.61 inches. So what might we expect the rest of this month? After a rather cool Saturday this weekend, the balance of the month will bring mostly well above normal temperatures, with many daytime highs in t...