Warmer Saturday, rain at times Saturday night and Sunday

University of Wisconsin-Madison, Space Science and Engineering Center

The sun came out, and it was a pleasant Earth Day in Minnesota. A look at the late afternoon satellite picture shows we were in a good spot today, with high pressure nearby. Clouds covered much of the east and west coasts:

rt422satbig
University of Wisconsin-Madison/Space Science and Engineering Center

A very nice satellite loop that covers most of North America can be found here . Times on the satellite loop are in Coordinated Universal Time (UCT) , which is 5 hours ahead of us this time of year.  For example, 1700 UTC is noon CDT.

I find it helpful to look at the big picture over North America before analyzing our local weather situation.

Warmer Saturday

Create a More Connected Minnesota

MPR News is your trusted resource for the news you need. With your support, MPR News brings accessible, courageous journalism and authentic conversation to everyone - free of paywalls and barriers. Your gift makes a difference.

An approaching low pressure system will give us southeasterly breezes and warmer temperatures on Saturday:

rt423h3

Much of Minnesota should reach 70 or higher on Saturday, but far northwestern Minnesota and northeastern Minnesota will see 50s and 60s.

Rain on Sunday

As the low pressure system gets closer, it will bring us some periods of rain Saturday night and Sunday:

rt422allfronts2

Some thunderstorms are also possible.

Highs Sunday will be cool over northern Minnesota, with many spots in the 40s and 50s:

rt424h

Severe weather risk 

The Storm Prediction Center of the National Weather Service indicates a slight risk of severe thunderstorms over southwest and central Iowa Sunday and Sunday night:

rt424svr
NWS Storm Prediction Center

General thunderstorms are expected over Minnesota and Wisconsin, but a strong thunderstorm is possible.

Cool week ahead

Lingering showers are possible on Monday, and more showers are on tap for Wednesday. Highs in the 50s are expected this coming week:

rt422gr4
NOAA/Global Forecast System data, via Weatherspark

Our average high this time of year is in the lower 60s.

I hope that you enjoy your weekend!

Programming note

You can hear my live weather updates at 7:35 a.m. weekend mornings on Minnesota Public Radio.