Peak of spring this week

It doesn't get any better than this.

Bring sunshine and milder temperatures rule this week as spring kicks into high gear across Minnesota. Kind weather maps whisper springtime across the Upper Midwest. An explosion of green in our landscape. Buds bursting into a leafy canopy all around. Blooms splatter a colorful tapestry. Birds and frogs return to serenade us day and night. And still no mosquitoes.

Minnesota's very own weather paradise?

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Sunset on lake Minnetonka Sunday. Paul Huttner/MPR News

Minnesota Weatherguide Calendar notes this week.

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  • Baltimore Orioles returns this week. (Jim Gilbert)

  • New moon of the budding plants Friday. (Ojibwe)

  • 14 hours 40 minutes of daylight this week

  • Sunset now at 8:30 pm or later through August 7th.

Mild week ahead

Get out there and enjoy this week. High pressure and sunshine today give way to a weak front diving south tomorrow with a few spotty showers in eastern Minnesota and Wisconsin. A few pop-up showers may graze the Twin Cities tomorrow afternoon into evening.

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NOAA

Pleasantly cool sunshine returns Wednesday, before a bigger warm up pushes temps into the 70s to near 80 degrees by Friday. Here's a visual layout of a more detailed forecast breakdown this week via Weatherspark. Still no metro frost in sight.

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Weatherspark NOAA GFS data

Twin Cities Forecast

  • Today: Weather perfection? Sunny & milder. High 66. Wind NW 5-10 mph.

  • Tuesday: Cool sky watching. Breezy & milder with mixed sun & clouds drifting by. Spotty PM showers? High 74. Wind W 10-20 mph.

  • Wednesday: Fresh air of spring. Sunny & pleasantly cool. High 64. Wind N 5-12 mph.

  • Thursday: June preview. Sunny & warmer. High 75. Wind SSW 5-15 mph.

  • Friday: Instant summer! Mostly sunny & warm. High near 80. Wind SW 5-15 mph.

  • Saturday: Thunder threat. High 75.

  • Sunday: Mixed sun & cooler. High 68.

Longer range: Hints of June?

The weather maps suggest we will start to see more frequent warm spell in the next two weeks. Our first 80 degree temp in the metro may arrive as early as this Friday or Saturday. Warmer days continue next week as the jet stream retreats northern Canada a little early this year. An early sign of a warmer than average summer?

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NOAA

NOAA's 16-day Global Forecast System outlook favors mild air, and no metro frost through May 18. I still think we'll see frost in the northern half of Minnesota but the metro petunias may be safe this year.

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NOAA via IPS Meteostar

Warm season

We've officially entered the warm season in Minnesota. The next six months are the warmest of the year on average.

  • #1 July 73.8 degrees

  • #2 August 71.2 degrees

  • #3 June 68.8 degrees

  • #4 September 62.0 degrees

  • #5 May 59.1 degrees

  • #6 October 48.9 degrees

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Monthly average temperature for next 5 months. NOAA

Brightest Days

How amazing to see light in the western sky after 9 p.m. again. This week marks the start of the brightest three months of the year in Minnesota.

  • 14 hours 30 minutes of daylight this week through Aug. 1

  • Summer solstice occurs 7 weeks from today (June 20 at 5:34 pm)

  • 15 hours 36 minutes of daylight on June 2oth

  • That's about 7 hours more daylight than in December.

Get out there and enjoy what looks like the best week of spring 2016.