Back to the 50's

Back to the 50's

Oh, how the tables have turned. Such a dramatic change from where we were through the month of September. October has been soggy and unseasonably cool, so far, which looks to continue through the foreseeable future. Interestingly, I haven't made the switch back to regular shoes yet. I love wearing sandals/flip flops and I'll be holding out until it gets cold enough to where I can't feel my toes. Summer goes way too fast here, so why not! Call me crazy, but I guess I'm trying to squeeze every last drop out of this semi-mild weather while we have it.

Low pressure systems (areas of moist rising air, rotating counter-clockwise) will find their way into the Midwest over the next 5 days bringing the threat for more scattered rain showers. Each system that drifts in will bring more clouds, leeching temperatures back into the 50's (average high in the Twin Cities now is 65 degrees)

Water Vapor Imagery

The water vapor image above from UCAR shows the amount of moisture in the atmosphere late Friday evening. dry areas on the map are indicated by the black or orange colors, which would correspond with clear skies. Whites and other colors indicate where the atmosphere is moist (clouds, showers and or thunderstorms). First of all, the big blob of green in the bottom left is Tropical Storm Olaf in the Eastern Pacific.

Back to the water vapor image above, the second area of interest is the white coloring over Midwest. This is lingering moisture, which is still present from the low pressure system that brought us our much needed rain over the first couple of days of October. Although we're not expecting widespread or heavy rainfall like what most of us saw on Thursday, we cannot rule out a passing shower or two today. Our next best chance of rain drifts in by early next week. Here's a look at the weather map on Monday night:


I must say, this storm is starting to look a lot like the storm that blew in late last week. We'll have to keep an eye on how things develop over the weekend, but a few spots could see 2" or more again if things continue to look the way they do now.

2009 Twin Cities Marathon Outlook: partly sunny, dry with light winds (west/northwest at 5-10 much of the day). Expect a chilly 8 am temperature of 43, but readings should recover to 53 by noon and 57 by 4 pm.


Todd's Outlook for the Twin Cities

Saturday: Still chilly and damp. Lingering clouds, a few sprinkles, but drier overall. Winds: NW 10-20. High: 51

Tonight: Mostly cloudy and cool with a light northwest breeze. Low: 37

Sunday: Better. Partly sunny, drier - milder. High: 56

Monday: More clouds, showers arrive. High: 55

Tuesday: Showers taper off, peeks of sun. High: 55

Wednesday: More clouds than sun, risk of a shower or sprinkle. High: 56

Thursday: Milder with more sun, closer to "average". High: 57