Smoky skies today, driving rain tomorrow

"May you live in interesting times" - anonymous

The origins of that purported Chinese curse are still in question. In our current context it riffs off an unusual weather pattern in the skies above Minnesota. Our weather takes a turn for the weird this week.

Smoke from dozens of wildfires out west tint our usually blue summer sky. Then an unusual October-like storm swirls into Minnesota tomorrow.

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What next? Cue the locusts?

Red sky in the morning

First the smoke. An eerie red sky dawned over Minnesota today. That's the effect of smoke from wildfire out west.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's smoke mapper shows thick smoke plume floating eastward through the Dakotas and Minnesota.

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NOAA

Fortunately for Minnesota's air quality most of the smoke remains aloft over Minnesota so far. That could change Thursday if storms mix smoke down to the surface.

Dozens of fires in the western United States and Canada are driving the smoke plumes.

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NOAA

Watch the smoke plumes generate and waft eastward.

Storm approaches tonight

Radars are glowing in the Dakotas. Our inbound storm spreads rain east into western Minnesota tonight. The best chances for rain reach the Twin Cities by Thursday morning, and linger through the day.

NOAA's NAM 3 km resolution model even suggests lingering showers and a chilly north wind into Friday morning.

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NOAA via tropical tidbits.

Widespread soaking

I still think many of us will see an inch or two of rain by Thursday night. Locally heavier totals are possible as the low spins overhead.

Aug-tober

Thursday trends blustery and raw late in the day. Highs in the 50s and lower 60s are more October than August. Temps rebound slowly this weekend.

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NOAA via Weather Bell

Stay tuned.

Western heat wave

A hot dome of high pressure brings record heat to the Pacific Northwest the next few days.

Meanwhile in Miami

The Miami floods this week seem to suggest engineering our way out of sea level rise and stormwater flooding appears to be harder than it looks.