Occasional showers and t-storms, some sun
The weekend won't be a washout, but there is a good chance that we'll see some showers and thunderstorms at times.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s North American Mesoscale forecast model shows the general rain pattern this weekend:
The best thunderstorm chances Saturday morning appear to be over northwestern Minnesota and west-central Minnesota. Scattered thunderstorms could spread across the remainder of Minnesota during the afternoon and evening.
The Storm Prediction Center of the National Weather Service shows a marginal risk of severe weather for west-central and central Minnesota Saturday and Saturday night:
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The marginal risk category indicates that an isolated severe thunderstorm is possible.
A few scattered thunderstorms are also possible Sunday afternoon and evening.
Cool Saturday, rebound Sunday
Our average high this time of year is 79 degrees in the Twin Cities. We're likely to top out in the lower 70s Saturday over much of Minnesota:
A few spots in northeastern Minnesota might stay in the upper 60s.
Highs in the 80s return to most of Minnesota on Sunday:
Northeastern Minnesota will see upper 70s.
Tropical update
Forecasters continue to watch an area of low pressure near the northeastern coast of Cuba. It is expected to drift west-northwestward over the next couple of days.
The National Hurricane Center states that there is a 60 percent chance that this will become a tropical cyclone within the next 5 days:
The low could approach south Florida in a few days, possibly as a tropical storm. If it passes into the warmer waters of the Gulf of Mexico early next week, it could become a hurricane.
The National Hurricane Center posts frequent tropical weather updates.
Sunsets before 8 p.m.
This caught my eye on the daily climate summary:
You'll notice that today's sunset is at 8 p.m., and tomorrow it sets before 8.
The sun will continue to set earlier as we go through late summer and autumn. A check of the Minneapolis sunrise/sunset table from the U.S. Naval Observatory shows that the sun won't set at 8 p.m. again until April 16, 2017!
Programming note
You can hear my live weather updates at 7:35 a.m. and 4:35 p.m. each Saturday and Sunday on Minnesota Public Radio.