More clouds, light showers here; Tropical Storm Andrea moving inland

So far the meteorological summer is not much different than the cool and damp spring of 2013. Yesterday's maximum temperature of 60 F at the Twin Cities International Airport matches the average high temperature for April 19th.

The high in Duluth on Wednesday was only 50 F and it received 0.41 inches of rainfall.

Temperatures reached the lower 70s in Hallock in far northwest Minnesota and 70 degrees in New Ulm, St. James and Owatonna.

I mentioned earlier this week about Growing Degree Days (GDD). The Midwest Climate Center produces a map indicating Modified Growing Degree Days.

Modified Growing Degree Days are typically used to monitor the development of corn, the assumption being that development is limited once the temperature exceeds 86°F or falls below 50°F. For example, if the high for the day was 92°F and the low 68°F, the average for use in the Modified GDD calculation would be 86 + 68 = 154 / 2 = 77.

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The first-named tropical storm of the season, Andrea, is bringing heavy rains and gusty winds to portions of Florida this morning.

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Early morning radar of western coast of Florida:

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The National Hurricane Center projects a steady path of the Tropical Storm to the northeast in the next 48 hours.

AT 400 AM CDT...0900 UTC...THE CENTER OF TROPICAL STORM ANDREA WAS LOCATED NEAR LATITUDE 27.0 NORTH...LONGITUDE 85.9 WEST. ANDREA IS MOVING TOWARD THE NORTH-NORTHEAST NEAR 13 MPH...20 KM/H. A TURN TOWARD THE NORTHEAST WITH AN ADDITIONAL INCREASE IN FORWARD SPEED IS EXPECTED TODAY. ON THE FORECAST TRACK...THE CENTER OF ANDREA WILL REACH THE COAST OF THE FLORIDA BIG BEND AREA LATER TODAY AND THEN MOVE ACROSS SOUTHEASTERN GEORGIA...SOUTHEASTERN SOUTH CAROLINA AND EASTERN NORTH CAROLINA BY FRIDAY.

You can track the path of TS Andrea here.

Rainfall will be excessive with this tropical storm.

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In our neck of the woods we'll experience another day dominated by clouds and scattered light showers. Friday promises to be a better day with somewhat milder temperatures.

Looking ahead to the weekend, more showers and thunderstorms are in store, particularly Saturday afternoon and night.

NAM rainfall prediction for Saturday evening. This band of thunderstorms is forecast to move steadily east overnight:

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Source:NOAA/Collge of DuPage

The highs on Saturday are expected to reach the lower to middle 70s, with periods of morning and early afternoon sunshine

Saturday forecast highs from the National Weather Service:

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The heavier showers are expected to move east on Sunday, but clouds are likely to produce some light intermittent precipitation throughout the day.

Craig Edwards