More Severe Weather and Red Flag Warnings

More Severe Weather and Red Flag Warnings:

More severe weather and Red Flag Warnings dominated the Minnesota weather headlines since last Friday. Friday, April 17th brought multiple tornadoes and several reports of large hail to southeastern Minnesota counties. Most of the tornadoes were rated EF-0 (65-85 mph winds) or EF-1 (86-110 mph winds), though two tornadoes, both near the Rochester area, were rated EF-2 (111-135 mph winds). These EF-2 tornadoes caused damage to homes and some farm buildings. There were also lots of reports of hail from 1 inch to 2 inches in diameter over the southeastern counties. The Minnesota State Climatology Office web site provides a summary description of the tornadoes and damage from these storms.

The La Crosse, WI National Weather Service web site offers a good online graphical summary of these storms as well.

For Monday through Wednesday of this week much of the state saw Red Flag Warnings each day from the National Weather Service. These warnings were provoked by windy conditions and very low relative humidity values which inflated the risk for wildfires. Many areas of the state reported afternoon relative humidity values between 10 percent and 19 percent. The Minnesota Interagency Command System had 19 wildfires reported across the state on Tuesday as fire danger continues to rise. On Wednesday (Earth Day), the dry air, along with prevailing south winds and sunny skies contributed to record high daily temperatures being reported from many parts of the state. Over 25 long term climate stations reported setting new record high maximum daily temperatures, with very low relative humidity readings. Some of these were:
93°F at Madison (Lac Qui Parle County)
92°F at Artichoke Lake (Big Stone County) and Wheaton (Traverse County)
91°F at Lamberton (Redwood County)
90°F at Redwood Falls, Alexandria, and Marshall
87°F at St Cloud
81°F at International Falls

Forecasts indicate that temperatures will be closer to normal for the balance of the month.

Winds continue to be strong this April with a large number of days bringing 30 mph or greater wind gusts. So far Rochester reports 17 such days, MSP 16 days, and St Cloud and Duluth 15 days.

Weekly Weather Potpourri:

The Weather Underground web site reports this week on a study from Climate Central about warming temperatures across the USA since 1970. The state showing the fastest warming is Alaska, where the mean annual temperature has increased by 4.4°F since 1970. Minnesota has warmed by about 2.7°F. Other comparisons can be found in the report at the Climate Central web site.

A recent report in the journal Nature highlights the subsidence of many global river deltas, where millions of people live.  Using satellite-based elevation data to track subsidence rates, the researchers examined 40 major river deltas.  For some major global river deltas, subsidence loos of elevation exceeds the rate of nearby sea level rise and poses a real threat to continued use of the delta lands for farming, manufacturing, and other human endeavors.  The study concludes that strategies should be developed to slow subsidence rates in some areas.

MPR listener question:

So much of the climate change news is depressing. I was wondering, from your perspective, how can people think about climate change in a way that feels more grounded and less overwhelming in everyday life?

Answer:

I have two suggestions to help cope with the complexities and trauma associated with climate change news. One, get connected to an organization that is doing something about it in many positive ways. Such an organization is the Minnesota Climate Adaption Partnership MCAP) which provides science-based answers and solutions that give us all hope for dealing with our changing climate. Some of their recent work includes the release of Climate and Weather Ready Toolkits and Guidelines for Homeowners, materials designed to help Minnesota homeowners understand and prepare for local weather and climate risks. They address five major threats facing the state — flooding, wildfire, extreme heat, wind and hail, and snow and ice — and were developed in collaboration with the design firm HGA. They are definitely worth checking out. MCAP also presents annual Climate Adaptation Awards which recognize exceptional achievements in climate resilience. The stories and accomplishments of the individuals and organizations that receive these awards are truly inspiring and give hope to us all that we have the ability to successfully adapt and mitigate climate change. You can find much more detail at the MCAP web site.

A second suggestion is to go to the Minnesota Public Radio (MPR) website and listen to archived sessions of Paul Huttner’s Climate Cast, which is a series of information conversations about climate change causes, symptoms, and cures with experts from a variety of professions. Climate Cast will greatly expand your knowledge and understanding of climate change as well as give you more hope for the future. BTW, congratulations to Paul Huttner and his remarkably productive and informative career as Chief Meteorologist at MPR He retires on the last day this month.

Twin Cities Almanac for April 24th:

The average MSP high temperature for this date is 61 degrees F (plus or minus 11 degrees F standard deviation), while the average low is 41 degrees F (plus or minus 9 degrees F standard deviation).

MSP Local Records for April 24th:

MSP records for this date: highest daily maximum temperature of 84 degrees F in 1962; lowest daily maximum temperature of 36 degrees F in 1887; lowest daily minimum temperature of 24 degrees F in 1875; highest daily minimum temperature of 62 degrees F in 1915, and record precipitation of 1.43 inches in 1908. Record snowfall for this date is 0.4 inches in 1887.

Average dew point for April 24th is 34°F; the maximum dew point on this date is 66°F in 1948 and the minimum dew point on this date is 8 degrees F in 2018.

All-time statewide records for April 24th:

The state record high temperature for this date is 92 degrees F at Madison (Lac Qui Parle County) in 1962 and at several southern and western Minnesota locations in 2009. The state record low temperature for this date is 7 degrees F at Seagull Lake (Cook County) in 2023. The statewide record for precipitation on this date is 5.44 inches at Winona Dam (Winona County) in 1990. A record 15.0 inches of snow fell at Fosston (Polk County) on this date in 1937.

Past Weather:

On April 24 of 1909 many citizens of northern Minnesota awoke to record-setting cold temperatures. Morning lows ranged from the single digits to the teens F. Ice was still present on many northern lakes. The afternoon high temperature at Bagley remained below freezing and just reached 30°F.

A late season winter storm brought heavy snowfall to portions of the Iron Range and the north shore of Lake Superior over April 23-24 of 1968. Many areas reported a foot for more of snow. It was the last significant snowfall of the spring that year.

A very warm day prevailed across Minnesota on April 24 of 2009. About half of the state landscape saw afternoon temperatures reach the 80s F, with observers in 11 counties reporting high temperatures of 90°F or higher. Up in Cook County along the north shore of Lake Superior where snow cover remained, the daytime high temperatures remained in the 40s F.

Outlook:

Cooler over the weekend, as temperatures fall back closer to normal, There will be slight chances for rain on Saturday and increasing chances by Sunday night. More widespread rain is likely Monday and Tuesday, then drier for the rest of the week as temperatures track a cooler than norma the last few days of April and beginning of May.