Well how about that... Snow fell across parts of the Central Rockies (west of Denver) on Friday. The image below was from Montezuma Basin Ski Area. Skiers and snowboarders are licking their chops and it won't be long now before the snow season starts across parts of the high elevations in the Western US.

Believe it or not, this is our last official weekend of summer 2023! Next Saturday, September 23rd is the arrival of the Autumnal Equniox, which is the astronomical start of fall in the northern hemisphere. With that being said, the weekend looks quite nice with temps warming into the low/mid 70s with plenty of sunshine. Overnight lows will be comfy and fall-like.

Here's a picture from the MN DNR Park Staff at Charles A. Lindbergh State Park. It looks like fall colors are already starting to show with 15%-25% leaf color showing up. With cooler nights ahead, the fall color palette will begin to rear its head with more vigor. It won't be long now!

According to the MN DNR, there is already a little fall color showing up across parts of the state. Note that peak color typically arrives along the International border around mid to late September. It could be a little later this year, but cooler nights ahead will help to get the fall colors underway.

According to the MN DNR, typical peak color arrives across the international border mid to late September with peak color arriving near the Twin Cities late September to mid October. It won't be long now and you'll be able to find your favorite fall color in a backyard near you.

Here's a look at Hurricane Lee from PM Friday, which looked a little more disorganized than it was just a few days ago when it was still a major storms. As of late Friday afternoon, Lee was still a category 1 storms 80mph sustained winds.

According to NOAA's NHC, the track for Lee keeps shows a gradual weakening phase through the end of the week as it slides north of Bermuda into Friday. Lee will approach the Northeastern US as a potential hurricane with fairly significant impacts along the coast before raining itself out as a Tropical Storm in Eastern Canada. Tropical Alerts have been posted from Southeastern Massachusetts to Nova Scotia.

According to NOAA's NHC, the Atlantic basin is still quite active with Lee, Margot and developing Nigel. The latest forecast for Nigel suggests that it could become another major storm as we head into next week.

Here's the forecast for what will become Nigel and possibly a major storm by next week. Bermuda could have another close call as Nigel passes the island around midweek. Stay tuned...

The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1st to November 30th, but did you know that the typical peak is September 10th? This is when the Atlantic Basin has had the most hurricanes and named storms since records began. This is also when weather conditions are at optimal levels for these types of storms.

It has been a hot summer with (32) days with highs at 90F degrees or warmer. This is the 6th most number of 90F degree days on record, the most recent being 1988 when there were 44 days.

Here's a list of all the 90F degree days that we've seen so far this year. The hottest days, were back to back on August 22nd and 23rd, when the MSP hit 98F and heat index values peaking around 110F to 120F around the metro. We also hit 98F on September 4th, but the dewpoint wasn't as high, so the heat index wasn't as intense. Uffda!

Looking at the last 30 years, the average number of 90F days at the MSP Airport is (14). July is the hottest month with an average of (6) 90F days. This year we've had (23) 90F days, last year we had (18) days in the 90s and in 2021 there were (27) days in the 90s. The most number of 90F days in any single year was (44) set in 1988.

On average, the wettest time of the year is in the summer, with the months of June, July and August seeing nearly 13" of rain at the MSP Airport. If we take a look at the 90 day precipitation anomaly, which dates back to early to mid June, some locations are nearly -3.00" to nearly -7.00" below average (in red/pink). Note that some locations across southeastern Minnesota are nearly -8.00" to -10.00" below average.

Drought continues and expanded from last week with a little more than 1% of the state in an Exceptional drought. Nearly 19% of the state is now in an Extreme drought, while more than 60% of the state is in a Severe drought, which includes much of the Twin Cities metro. 3 months ago, 77% of the state was considered abnormally dry, with nearly 19% in a moderate drought, so things have certainly gotten much worse since then.

The weather outlook on Saturday shows temps warming into the 60s and 70s across much of the state, which will at or slightly below to average for this time of the year. It'll be dry across much of the region with partly cloudy skies.

The weather outlook for the Twin Cities on Saturday, September 16th will be dry and quiet with temps warming into the low/mid 70s. There will be a mix of sun and clouds with NW winds around 15mph.

Weather conditions for Minneapolis on Saturday will be quiet with temps starting in the lower 50s in the morning and will top out around 70F in the afternoon with northwesterly winds around 15mph.

The 5 day temperature outlook for Minneapolis shows near average temperatures through the upcoming weekend with readings warming into the low/mid 70s. Next week looks a little warmer as temps warm into the upper 70s and lower 80s, which would be nearly +5F to +10F above average for mid September.

The max dewpoint forecast for Minneapolis over the next several days shows very comfortable and fall-like readings in the 50s. Dewpoint readings will increase to around 60F as our temperatures increase midweek.

The 7 day extended weather outlook through mid month shows near normal temps in the low/mid 70s through the weekend. It gets a little warmer next week with a few days approaching 80F or better. We'll also see better rain chances by the 2nd half of next week and weekend.

According to NOAA's National Blend of Models, temperatures over the next several days will be quite nice with readings generally in the 70s through mid month. Next week looks a little warmer with highs approaching the low/mid 80s for a few days. It doesn't appear to last long, though, as readings fall back into the low/mid 70s by the last full weekend of September.

The weather outlook in the Midwest through next weekend looks fairly subdued through the weekend and much of next week. It looks mostly dry and quiet until the 2nd half of next week and weekend. Areas of heavy rains will be possible for some in the Midwest.

According to NOAA's Climate Prediction Center, the 8 to 14 day temperature outlook shows Warmer than average temperatures along and east of the Rockies. Meanwhile, cooler than average temperatures will be found in the Western & Southwestern US.

According to NOAA's Climate Prediction Center, more active weather will develop across the Midwest from the 23rd to the 29th.

Keep your expectations low. Maybe you'll be pleasantly surprised. I was happy to see more rain than predicted Thursday night. I was happy to see the "westward jog" of Hurricane Lee never quite materialize, sparing New England a direct hit.

I was less pleased to hear the latest from NASA and NOAA: this summer was the hottest since modern-day record keeping began in 1850. By the way, August was the 534th consecutive month with temperatures above the 20th century average. A tough summer for climate change deniers. Today starts out sunny and cool but clouds should increase by afternoon. Fittingly, Sunday will be the sunnier day of the weekend, with low 70s. I see a streak of 80s next week; impressive considering the sun is now as high in the sky as it was in late March.

It's too far off for specifics, but models hint at a wetter pattern late next week and the weekend of September 23-25, with swarms of T-storms.

It was nice waking up to a drumroll of rain hitting my roof Friday. Play it again, Sam.

SATURDAY: AM sun, PM clouds. Winds: NW 10-20. High: 69.

SATURDAY NIGHT: Partly cloudy and quiet Winds: N 5-10. Low: 51.

SUNDAY: More sunshine, winds ease. Winds: N 8-13. High: 72.

MONDAY: Sunny and warmer. Winds: SE 8-13. Wake-up: 52. High: 77.

TUESDAY: Warm sunshine, stray T-storm. Winds: SE 10-20. Wake-up: 60. High: 81.

WEDNESDAY: Sunny and breezy. Feels like August. Winds: S 15-25. Wake-up: 62. High 85.

THURSDAY: Hazy sun, sticky. Winds: SE 10-20. Wake-up: 63. High 86.

FRIDAY: Showers and T-storms may be heavy. Winds: S 10-20. Wake-up: 63. High 78.

September 16th

2006: A rapidly forming tornado hits Rogers just before 10pm, causing one fatality.

1992: New Market receives nearly a foot of rain. A bridge collapses during a flood in northern Le Sueur County.

1955: An F1 tornado touches down in Mille Lacs and Kanabec Counties, causing 1 fatality and $500,000 in damages.

September 16th

Average High: 73F (Record: 94F set in 1955)

Average Low: 54F (Record: 38F set in 1873)

Record Rainfall: 1.97" set in 1997

Record Snowfall: NONE

September 16th

Sunrise: 6:52am

Sunset: 7:22pm

Hours of Daylight: ~12 hours & 29 minutes

Daylight LOST since yesterday: 3 Minutes & 5 Seconds

Daylight LOST since Summer Solstice (June 21st): ~ 3 Hour & 8 Minutes

2.2 Days Since New Moon

Temperatures on Saturday will be a little cooler than average across the Central US. The Pacific Northwest will be a little toasty with highs approaching 90F. The Northern New England States with Lee as it slides into Eastern Canada.

The weather outlook on Saturday will be unsettled across parts of the Central US along a cool front that will continue to slowly sag south. Areas of heavy rain will be possible across Texas and the Southeast.

The weather outlook through Sunday shows Lee moving into Eastern Canada with strong winds and heavy rainfall. Heavy rains will fade across Texas, but will develop across parts of the Southeastern US.

The extended precipitation outlook shows areas of heavy rainfall across the US and across part of the Midwest.

"This year's string of record-breaking disasters – from deadly wildfires and catastrophic floods to record-high ocean temperatures and record-low sea ice in Antarctica – seems like an acceleration of human-induced climate change. And it is. But not only because greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise. What we are also observing is the long-predicted water vapour feedback within the climate system. Since the late 1800s, global average surface temperatures have increased by about 1.1℃, driven by human activities, most notably the burning of fossil fuels which adds greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide and methane) to the atmosphere. As the atmosphere warms, it can hold more moisture in the form of water vapour, which is also a greenhouse gas. This in turn amplifies the warming caused by our emissions of other greenhouse gases."

See more from The Conversation HERE:

"This year's string of record-breaking disasters—from deadly wildfires and catastrophic floods to record-high ocean temperatures and record-low sea ice in Antarctica—seems like an acceleration of human-induced climate change. And it is. But not only because greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise. What we are also observing is the long-predicted water vapor feedback within the climate system. Since the late 1800s, global average surface temperatures have increased by about 1.1°C, driven by human activities, most notably the burning of fossil fuels which adds greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide and methane) to the atmosphere. As the atmosphere warms, it can hold more moisture in the form of water vapor, which is also a greenhouse gas. This in turn amplifies the warming caused by our emissions of other greenhouse gases."

See more from Phys.org HERE:

"As a lifelong U2 fan, Beth Nabi had always wanted to see a concert at Red Rocks, the outdoor venue made famous by the 1983 concert film Under a Blood Red Sky. So when Louis Tomlinson played the Colorado amphitheater in June, the One Direction die-hard jumped at the chance. The skies over Red Rocks were iffy that night; venue staff issued weather alerts and paused the show several times, leaving concertgoers to seek shelter under awnings, huddle under raincoats in their seats, or wait it out in their cars. Finally, it looked like the show would go forward, so Nabi made a quick bathroom stop in anticipation of Tomlinson taking the stage. But when she emerged from the stall, she found the women's restroom "crammed" with people packed shoulder to shoulder, and more streaming in. "It was mind-boggling," the 44-year-old college professor says over Zoom from her home in Jacksonville, Florida. She wondered, "Do I need to panic?" Then she glimpsed the sky outside and realized what was happening: Hail the size of golf balls—one person reported seeing stones the size of apples—was pummeling down, pelting concertgoers, and sending thousands scurrying for cover wherever they could find it."

See more from Pitchfork HERE: