Surf’s up: Gale warnings for Lake Superior

Surf's up Brah!

An unusually strong low pressure system for late July is swirling through Ontario, Canada today. The strong pressure gradient around the spinning low will crank up gale force winds across Minnesota and Lake Superior.

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http://earth.nullschool.net/

Gale warnings are flying for Lake Superior today. Sustained winds to 25 knots and gust to 40 knots over open water will drive waves of 6 to 9 feet along Lake Superior's North Shore.

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URGENT - MARINE WEATHER MESSAGE

NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DULUTH MN

607 AM CDT WED JUL 29 2015

...SOUTHWEST GALES WINDS TODAY...

.STRONG SOUTHWEST WINDS WITH FREQUENT GALE FORCE GUSTS WILL DEVELOP OVER WESTERN LAKE SUPERIOR THIS MORNING...PERSISTING INTO THE EVENING.

CHEQUAMEGON BAY-BAYFIELD TO OAK POINT WI-GRAND PORTAGE TO GRAND MARAIS MN-GRAND MARAIS TO TACONITE HARBOR MN-TACONITE HARBOR TO SILVER BAY HARBOR MN-SILVER BAY HARBOR TO TWO HARBORS MN-TWO HARBORS TO DULUTH MN-DULUTH MN TO PORT WING WI-PORT WING TO SAND ISLAND WI-SAND ISLAND TO BAYFIELD WI-OAK POINT TO SAXON HARBOR WI-

607 AM CDT WED JUL 29 2015

...GALE WARNING NOW IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 PM CDT THIS EVENING...

* SUSTAINED WINDS...SOUTHWEST 15 TO 25 KT.

* WIND GUSTS...35 TO 40 KNOTS.

* WAVES...AS HIGH AS 6 TO 9 FEET ALONG THE NORTH SHORE OF LAKE SUPERIOR.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

THIS GALE WARNING MEANS WIND GUSTS IN EXCESS OF 35 KNOTS ARE IMMINENT. OPERATING A VESSEL IN GALE CONDITIONS REQUIRES EXPERIENCE AND PROPERLY EQUIPPED VESSELS. IT IS HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

THAT MARINERS WITHOUT THE PROPER EXPERIENCE SEEK SAFE HARBOR PRIOR TO THE ONSET OF GALE CONDITIONS.

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Waves build as the day wears on in Grand Marais, Minn., and all along the North Shore. Here's an early snapshot in Grand Marais Harbor. These sailboats moored in the harbor are in for a bouncy ride today. Follow the action here.

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Cook County Visitors Bureau

Wind advisories are flying for most of Minnesota north and west of the Twin Cities today.

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Twin Cities NWS

URGENT - WEATHER MESSAGE

NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TWIN CITIES/CHANHASSEN MN

253 AM CDT WED JUL 29 2015

...STRONG NORTHWEST WINDS DEVELOPING...

A WIND ADVISORY HAS BEEN ISSUED FOR PORTIONS OF WEST CENTRAL...CENTRAL AND EAST CENTRAL MINNESOTA FROM 10 AM TO 5 PM THIS AFTERNOON. IN THE WAKE OF A VERY STRONG SUMMER STORM SYSTEM THAT WILL MOVE ACROSS THE CANADIAN PRAIRIES TODAY...GUSTY NORTHWEST WINDS WILL DEVELOP QUICKLY THIS MORNING. SUSTAINED WINDS OF 30 TO 35 MPH...WITH GUSTS OVER 40 MPH WILL OCCUR IN THE ADVISORY AREA. A FEW GUSTS OF 45 TO 50 MPH WILL ALSO BE POSSIBLE.

Monster low for July

The low pressure system spinning north of the border today has an unusually strong pressure gradient for late July. Tightly packed isobars wrap around the center. As the low spins toward Hudson Bay, westerly winds drive a fresher air mass into Minnesota this week.

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NOAA

Free AC front: Dew point crash last night

Dew points crashed last night as the front blew through Minnesota. In the Twin Cities, dew points plunged from a stuffy 72 degrees at 7 p.m., to a comfy 59 degrees in just 3 hours by 10 p.m. The dew point hit a comfy 50 degrees this morning.

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Twin Cities NWS

The pressure gradient relaxes and winds ease Thursday and Friday. The forecast? Pure summer bliss. A solid week of highs in the 80s with low humidity until the weekend.

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Weatherspark-Euro output

Enjoy!