Issued at 5:40 PM CDT, Thursday, April 30th, 2009
Here are some selected rainfall totals across Northeast Minnesota from 7 AM CDT Wednesday through 7 AM CDT Thursday…
West Duluth MN: About 0.50″
Duluth MN (Airport) 0.31″
Brainerd MN: 0.45″
Grand Marais MN: 0.37″
Hibbing MN: 0.54″
Babbitt MN: 0.64″
Littlefork MN: 0.53″
Silver Bay MN: 0.67″
Floodwood MN: 0.51″
3 miles East of Orr MN: 0.46″
Hinckley MN: 0.53″
Rainfall estimates from Wednesday and Wednesday Night’s event from GR3 radar out of Duluth shows two seperate areas of somewhat higher QPF in our local area…One such area ran from Eastern Cass and Northeast Crow Wing County MN through Central and Northern Aitkin County MN through Southern, Central, and Eastern Itasca County MN into Western St. Louis County MN… This affected the cities of Crosby…Aitkin…McGregor…Palisade…Swatara…Hill City…Remer…Warba…Grand Rapids…Deer River…Wawina…Floodwood…and Hibbing… According to radar, rainfall totals of 0.50″-1.15″ occurred in those areas.
The second area of maxed out QPF from this event occurred from Eastern St. Louis County MN into most of Lake County and Southwestern Cook County in Northeast Minnesota. This affected the cities of…Tower…Shaw…Ely…Forest Center…Silver Bay…Little Marais…Wales…and Tofte… Rain amounts in this area also ranged from 0.50″-1.15″…
Forecast Discussion for Northeast Minnesota and Northwest Wisconsin
(Today’s Weather)
Low pressure of 1002 mb has reached Lake Nipigon Ontario or northwest of Thunder Bay Ontario Canada as of 5 PM Today. A cold front attached to this low took a few hours longer to exit the Eastern part of Minnesota which led to a longer period of time spent in low clouds, fog, and a marine layer from Downtown Duluth and Superior and along the North Shore of Lake Superior in Northeast Minnesota. The front finally passed through Duluth-Superior between 2PM-3PM Today which caused the surface wind to shift to the west. This helped to scour out the marine layer of air and replaced it with a brief surge in temperatures. The cold front as of late This Afternoon had moved into Western and Northern Wisconsin with a few spotty showers noted along this front as it moved through the area Today. Partly sunny to mostly cloudy skies were found across Northeast Minnesota and Northwest Wisconsin Today with high temperatures in the 50s and 60s…but cold air advection and cold air STRATOCU clouds are quickly spreading southeast out of Northcentral Minnesota late Today behind the surface low and cold front. 5 PM H85 temperatures ranged from +1 to +7 degrees C across our local area. Winds Today which were out of the south or east turned into the west and southwest at 10-20 mph with gusts from 25 to around 45 mph found immediately behind the cold frontal passage.
(Today’s Upper Level Analysis)
Pattern change is well underway as the southwest flow aloft which has covered the Upper Midwest over the last several days is being replaced by a west and eventually northwest flow while an active storm track sets back up from the Southern-Central Plains toward the Ohio Valley into early next week. Main interest in our area Today was the strong H5 low and trough which continued to surge east through Southern Ontario/Upper Midwest/Upper Great Lakes region Today with 12 hour 500 mb height falls of 120 meters noted in Northern Minnesota-Southern Ontario per 5 PM RUC model analysis.
(Tonight)
Look for partly-mostly cloudy skies with a possible light rain shower in Northern areas of the state. Lows will be in the 30s and 40s with winds from the west at 10-20 mph with gusts of 25-40 mph This Evening.
(Friday and Friday Night)
Partly to mostly cloudy skies will continue during this period with a new cold front moving into Northern Minnesota by Friday Night. This boundary could cause a few light rain or snow showers across Northern areas of the state Friday Night as we begin the month of May. High temps on Friday will be mainly in the 40s and 50s with lows Friday Night in the 20s and 30s. Winds during this period will be out of the west, southwest, or northwest at 10-25 mph.
(Extended Forecast)
Cold front will exit the area to the south on Saturday with high pressure then building into the Upper Midwest through early next week. Could see a rain shower or two over parts of the area on Saturday with some snow possible early in the day up North….Overall though it looks mainly dry from Saturday through Monday in our local area. High temperatures on Saturday will be in the 40s and 50s with 50s and 60s expected on Sunday. Lows Saturday Night and Sunday Night will be mainly in the 30s but some 20s can’t be ruled out in the traditional cold spots in Northern Minnesota especially Saturday Night. The next threat for some rain around our area could come the middle or end of next week as a complex weather system unfolds with some energy moving in from the west and possibly coming up from the south. Plenty of time to iron out those details.
5 Day Forecast for Duluth/Superior
.Tonight… Breezy. Considerable cloudiness. Low 35 to 40. Wind west to southwest at 15 to 25 mph with gusts to 35 mph This Evening.
.Friday… Variable cloudiness. High 48 to 54. Wind west at 15 to 20 mph.
.Friday Night… Partly to mostly cloudy. Low 30 to 35. Wind west at 10 to 20 mph.
.Saturday… Variable cloudiness. High 50 to 55.
.Saturday Night… Clearing. Low 30 to 35.
.Sunday… Partly cloudy. High 55 to 60.
.Sunday Night… Mostly clear. Low 32 to 37.
.Monday… Partly cloudy. High 60 to 65.
Normal High Temperature Tomorrow 57 degrees
Normal Low Temperature Tomorrow 35 degrees
Tim