R-E-L-I-E-F: Refreshing 4 day break from 90 degree heat arrives

73F tropical dew point at MSP at 9pm last night

59F more comfy dew point at 7am this morning (A 14 degree drop!)

Source: University of Illinois

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.

Twin Cities metro quick look forecast:

Cooler & much less humid today with a chance of spotty PM Showers & T-Showers.

Source: Twin Cities NWS

Duluth & North Shore quick look forecast:

A good 5-10 degrees cooler than the metro!

Source: Duluth NWS

92F high temp at MSP Airport at 1:08 pm Wednesday

24th day at or above 90 so far in 2012 at MSP Airport

27 days at or above 90 in 2007

(last year we sweated through more 90 degree days)

78F GFS forecast high for the metro on Friday! (NAM says 79F)

50s comfortable dew points in the metro and most of Minnesota through Friday

A few scattered showers linger in eastern MN today

Free AC: Cooler, drier very pleasant weather Friday & Saturday

A shot at 90 again by next Monday & Tuesday

Source: Twin Cities NWS

Sigh of Relief:

Finally, a well advertised break in the heat for Minnesota in the "Sweaty Summer of 2012" is on the way.

Two cold fronts will combine to drop temps as much as 15 to 20 degrees by Friday. The first front eased through Wednesday afternoon. The second drops straight south from Canada today with a few scattered showers, and much cooler air.

This will be a great time to shut off overworked AC units, open the windows, and enjoy some "good sleeping weather" in Minnesota.

Coolest in a month:

Last week I talked about the potential for highs in the upper 70s by this Friday. Today, both the NAM and GFS are cranking out highs in the upper 70s Friday at MSP.

Source: NOAA via SUNY-Albany

In spite of some breathless headlines unnecessarily warning of a straight week of 90 degree heat, we've only logged 2 days at or above 90 since Friday, and 6 days in the 80s in the past 8 days in the metro. That's a meteorologically significant break from the hottest start to July on record. I'd be remiss if I didn't point that significant trend out in advance.

If we top out in the 70s Friday, it will be the coolest day in over a month, since we hit 77 at MSP Airport on June 25th.

Temps will be even cooler up north Friday & Saturday. It will feel like early September (did I just type September?) with highs in the lower 70s and lows in the low 50s...maybe even upper 40s Saturday morning!

Source: NOAA

Cooler by the Lake? Not so much

I've been tracking record warm water temps on Lake Superior this week.

Source: NOAA via Climate Central

With lake temps now in the 70s from near Duluth all the way past Grand Marais, any breezes off the lake will not provide the usual level of cooling you might expect this time of year.

I talked about warmer lake temps, and more frequent flash floods like the Duluth event to folks in Grand Marais at the North House Folk School in early June. I just didn't think it could get this warm, this fast. With "swimmable" 70s just off of Artist's Point, it's a whole different experience this summer in Grand Marais.

On thing to keep in mind with Lake Superior water temps is they can change quickly. A sudden shift in wind direction can push warm surface water away from shore, and bring an "upwelling" of cold water (in the 40s) from the depths of the big lake. Keep an eye out for sudden swings in water temps as you enjoy the unusually balmy waters of the North Shore the rest of this summer.

Who knew that Grand Marais and the entire North Shore would become "The San Diego of the North" in 2012?

PH