Dog days: steamy and partly stormy this week

The ancient Greeks and Romans had some ideas about why it got hot this time of year.

When bright Sirius the dog star rose with the morning sun, it was believed to add extra heating power to the blazing August Mediterranean sun. The term "dog days" was translated from Latin into English about 500 years ago. The hottest days of summer in the northern hemisphere became the dog days.

Of course, we've since learned earth's axial tilt is the reason for the seasons. Summer as we know it actually happens because the sun's rays more directly face the northern hemisphere this time of year.

The hottest days of summer generally arrive about a month after the solstice thanks to the lag of seasons. The balance between the amount of incoming solar radiation peaks in late July. The heat often lingers well into August, before the first real cold front push south from Canada as we head toward Labor Day.

[image]

Warm July

Speaking of warmth, July was warm and wet across Minnesota. It was the 11th straight warmer than average month in the Twin Cities. Monsoon-like rainfall totals of 5 to 8-plus inches were common across Minnesota in July. St. Cloud and the areas from Brainerd Lakes to Hinckley picked up some lake-swelling downpours in the past few weeks.

Stormy Monday (night)

The next low-pressure wave cuts into our increasingly humid air mass tonight. Look for another wave of storms to cross Minnesota tonight.

Slight severe risk

The highest (slight) risk zone for severe storms is in western Minnesota. Most model runs suggest storms may lose some punch as they approach the Twin Cities late tonight. But we'll likely be kept awake by lightning and thunder once again in this active summer of 2016.

Mostly-steamy August

Welcome to August, our second warmest month of the year on average in Minnesota on the rare chance anyone asks. It surprises some that June is actually our third warmest month on average, just  behind August. There's that whole lag of the seasons thing again.

Right now late Tuesday and Wednesday look quiet, but hot and steamy with highs pushing toward 90 degrees. A cooler front brings relief from the heat starting Friday. The longer range models suggest another heat surge as we approach mid-August.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's 8 to 14 day temperature outlook paints most of the U.S. in "summer red" once again.

Did I mention the Minnesota State Fair begins three weeks form Thursday?