Updraft® - Minnesota Weather News

Temperature focus: Frost returns to Minnesota this week

Frost is typical in May for most of Minnesota

You may want to cover up those pretty new annuals you planets last weekend.

A chilly air mass sitting over the Arctic Circle will dive straight south into Minnesota the next few days. Frost advisories and freeze warnings are likely the next few mornings.

Cooler Thursday

The cold air push begins Thursday. The first freezing temperature arrive in northern Minnesota Thursday morning.

Forecast low temperatures Thursday morning
Forecast low temperatures Thursday morning
NOAA

Highs hover in the 40s across northwest Minnesota. You can see the milder air getting a shove south into Iowa Thursday afternoon.

Forecast high temperatures Thursday
Forecast high temperatures Thursday
NOAA

Twin Cities: Frost threat Friday and Saturday

Freexing temperatures cover most of Minnesota Friday and Saturday mornings. Temperatures may hover just above the freezing mark in the inner Twin Cities urban core.

Forecast low temperatures Friday morning
Forecast low temperatures Friday morning
NOAA

May frost is common

Frost in early May is common across most of Minnesota. Here are the dates when there is a 90-percent chance for no more frost. These are usually considered the “safe-planting” dates for the most tender plants. Frost is common in northeast Minnesota into June.

fro
There is just a 10 percent probability of frost on or after these dates.
Minnesota DNR-Climatology

Here are some median dates for the last 32-degree temperatures at selected locations. The last 32-degree temperature in spring occurs after these dates half the time historically.

  • Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport: April 25

  • Brainerd, Minn.: May 11

  • Ely, Minn.: May 26

Milder next week

Next week starts cool. But milder weather with highs in the 60s looks likely later next week.

Temperature forecast for Twin Cities
Temperature forecast for Twin Cities
NOAA via Weather Bell

Spring is taking its sweet time in Minnesota again this year.