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Headlines:
-Cold June so far.......
-Southeastern Minnesota catching up on rainfall
-Weekly Weather Potpourri
-MPR listener question
-Almanac for June 12th
-Past weather features
-Blirty
-Outlook
Topic: Cold June so far....
This past Saturday, Sunday, and Monday was one of the coldest three-day periods in climate history for the month of June. The Minnesota State Climatology Office noted that based on daytime maximum temperatures it was the coldest three day period in June for the Twin Cities since 1951. Elsewhere around the state many record lows, as well as record cold maximum temperature records were broken on those three dates. Remarkably on Sunday, June 7th Browns Valley in the normally warm western thumb of the state reported a record setting cold daytime high of just 48 degrees F! Many other locations saw highs in the upper 40s F as well. Duluth reported a high of only 47 degrees F on June 8th (tying a record) with 0.80 inches of rain under persistent cloud cover. Across the state many climate observers reported temperatures for June 1-9 that averaged 6 to 10 degrees F colder than normal. Bear in mind these are significant negative departures in temperature as the state's coldest June, that of 1969 average 6.5 degrees F colder than normal.
Topic: Southeastern Minnesota catching up on rainfall
The weather in June has brought some relief to southeastern Minnesota counties which were quite dry coming into the month. Some observers have already reported over 3 inches of rainfall so far this month. These include: Albert Leas with 3.05 inches, Austin with 3.54 inches, Grand Meadow with 3.79 inches, Lanesboro with 3.42 inches, and Spring Valley with 3.12 inches. Much of this rainfall has helped to recharge soil moisture values there, now estimated at 8 to 9 inches of available moisture in the top 5 feet of soil.
Topic: Weekly Weather/Climate Related Potpourri:
Leavenheath in Suffolk of the United Kingdom reported a severe thunderstorm and tornado on Sunday, June 7th. The BBC carried photos of this somewhat rare storm for eastern sections of the country. There was reported damage inflicted due to lightning strikes, but the tornado was short-lived. Read more at....http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/8089268.stm
Last weekend brought a winter weather advisory to parts of Montana and North Dakota. From 1 to 6 inches of snowfall was reported, mostly from locations with some elevation. The snowfall was short-lived as temperatures rose into the 50s and 60s F after being in the 30s and 40s F to start the weekend.
MPR listener question: I read in your book (Minnesota Weather Almanac) that 1894 was the driest summer (June-August) in Twin Cities history with just 1.73 inches of rainfall for the three months. My question, how many actual days did it rain that summer?
Answer: Ignoring traces as non significant amounts, rainfall occurred during the summer of 1894 on only 8 days in June, totaling 1.15 inches, on only 5 days in July, totaling 0.20 inches, and on only 4 days in August totaling 0.38 inches. This meager amount of rainfall preceded the horrific fall wildfire season of 1894 in eastern Minnesota.
Almanac for June 12th:
The average MSP high temperature for this date is 78 degrees F (plus or minus 7 degrees F standard deviation), while the average low is 58 degrees F (plus or minus 7 degrees F standard deviation).
MSP local Records for June 12th:
MSP weather records for this date include: highest daily maximum temperature of 95 degrees F in 1956; lowest daily maximum temperature of 51 degrees F in 1929; lowest daily minimum temperature of 39 degrees F in 1877: highest daily minimum temperature of 72 F in 1920. Record precipitation for this date is 2.35 inches in 1899. No snowfall on this date historically.
Average dew point for June 12th is 55 degrees F, with a maximum of 74 degrees F in 1961 and a minimum of 30 degrees F in 1969.
All-time state records for June 12th:
The all-time state record high temperature for this date is 102 degrees F at Crookston (Polk County) in 1893 and at Redwood Falls (Redwood County) in 1956. The all-time state record low temperature for this date is 23 degrees F at Remer (Cass County) in 1985. The all-time state record precipitation for this date is 8.00 inches at Minnesota City (Winona County) in 1899. No measurable snowfall has occurred in the state on this date.
Past Weather Features:
About 5:00 pm in the afternoon on June 12, 1899 a funnel cloud touched down north of Stillwater, MN and destroyed one home. However, 40 minutes later a more massive F-5 tornado (winds >261 mph) passed through New Richmond, WI resulting in 117 deaths and destroying most of the town. The unfortunate circumstances were that many people had come to town that day to go to the circus, which had just ended about an hour before the tornado struck. Over 200 people were injured and nearly every building in town was damaged or destroyed. The same storm system brought 8 to 10 inches of rainfall to southeastern Minnesota sending flash floods down the Zumbro and Cannon Rivers and flooding out many crops. A number of livestock were lost in the floods as well.
June 9-10, 2002 brought severe weather and flash floods to far northern Minnesota around Lake of the Woods. Observers in Lake of the Woods, Koochiching, and Roseau Counties reported from 10 to 14 inches of rainfall, with a maximum of 14.55 inches reported near Roosevelt, MN. This level of rainfall was unprecedented for these counties and caused widespread flash flooding. The flooding resulted in significant damage to the city of Roseau, where the Roseau River peaked at an all-time high flood crest of 23.40 ft (major flood stage is at 19 ft). You can read more about this storm at.....
http://www.climate.umn.edu/doc/journal/flash_floods/ff020609-10.htm
June 12th of last year (2008) brought tornadoes to Hubbard, Clearwater, and Becker Counties, but all were short-lived.
Word of the Week: Blirty
This is not unlike the word "blurt" which refers to a sudden, impulsive, and often unexpected verbal response from a person. This term is used primarily in Scotland to refer to sudden spells of wind gusts and rain which occur during unsettled highly overcast conditions. Blirty weather certainly fits for much of our weather this past week in Minnesota, some of which brought spells of rain and cool wind gusts from the north and east. I recall seeing many jackets and sweatshirts this week. We have also seen plenty of cloud, fog, drizzle, rain and wind, along with some record cold low and high temperatures already this month.
Outlook: Warmer over the weekend with a chance for showers and thunderstorms by Monday. Warmest week of June so far next week with another chance for showers and thunderstorms by Wednesday. Temperatures will be near or slightly above normal values.
Further Information:
For older versions of the "Minnesota WeatherTalk" newsletter go to
http://www.climate.umn.edu/weathertalk/
For access to other information resources go to
http://www.climate.umn.edu/Seeley/
NOTE: News releases were current as of the date of issue. If you have a question on older releases, use the news release search (upper left-hand column of the News main page) or the main Extension search (upper right of this page) to locate more recent information.
