Drier today; sticky and stormy likely for Independence Day
That spring-like cold front that blew widespread 5o-mph winds across our area on Sunday ushered in some much less humid air for the start of the work week. Expect drying conditions across central and southern Minnesota Monday.
High temperatures will range from the upper 70s near Canada to 80s for the rest of Minnesota. The Twin Cities should have an afternoon high near 87.
Storms likely in the north
Scattered thunderstorms will break out over west central Minnesota by late Monday afternoon or early evening and build northeastward toward the Arrowhead.
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Some storms could become severe Monday evening mainly around the Wheaton-Fergus Falls-Park Rapids-Walker area.
Tuesday and Tuesday night could also bring a scattering of thunderstorms to northern sections of the state.
Sultry, probably stormy Independence Day
Wednesday promises to be a hot, humid day while we are in the warm sector ahead of a cold front. High temperatures will range from the low 80s to low 90s from north to south. Dew points are likely to climb into the tropical 70s for much of Minnesota except the Arrowhead and northwestern corner. Parts of southern Minnesota might even see dew points nudge into the low 80s late Wednesday afternoon.
There will be two chances for thunderstorms on Wednesday. The first round might be scattered ongoing morning thunderstorms lingering from overnight activity. They should weaken and and leave us with just scattered showers from later morning into the afternoon.
Heating of the day and abundant moisture will fuel a stronger, more-organized outbreak of thunderstorms later Wednesday afternoon and especially for the evening. Fireworks might be both man-made and natural.
Some storms might become severe in Minnesota and then Wisconsin later on Wednesday, but it is premature to be very specific about likely locations.
After the Fourth
After the fireworks die down late on Wednesday, expect less heat and humidity for Thursday through Saturday.
July heat
Long-term outlooks are forecasting an unseasonably hot July for much of the country, especially from the Great Lakes states to the Northeast. Numbers on the map below indicated the percentage chance of experiencing an above- or below-normal average temperature for the month of July. "EC" means equal chances of being warm or cold for the month.
Those of us who prefer a little less heat might opt to visit Montana.
