Cooler, windy Tuesday with pop-up showers and thunder

Updated 9 a.m.

We’ll have a mix of clouds and sun Tuesday which will help generate some showers and even thunderstorms in the afternoon. It will also be cooler and windy.

Windy, cooler Tuesday; a few showers, thunderstorms

It will be cooler and continue to be windy behind a cold front Tuesday. Winds will blow at 15-30 mph from the northwest.

The cooler air aloft combined with a peek of strong late April sunshine and some lingering moisture will generate spotty afternoon showers and even a few thunderstorms.

There will be just enough energy, which we measure by something called CAPE — convective available potential energy — to generate those thunderstorms in the east. Some small hail is even possible, especially in western Wisconsin.

High temperatures will range from just near 60 degrees in southern Minnesota, which is normal for the date, to the 40s in northern Minnesota.

The clouds will break up quickly after dark, leading to a frosty night across the state. Overnight lows will drop into the 20s in northern and western Minnesota to the low to mid-30s in the Twin Cities. 

Abundant sunshine returns Wednesday, although it will still be slightly on the cooler side with highs in the 50s to near 60. 

Thursday will be warmer ahead of a stormy pattern that is setting up.

Thursday night into Saturday will bring waves of showers and thunderstorms. There will be a bit of a 12 to 24 hour break before another system swings in from the southwest, bringing yet more showers and thunderstorms Sunday into Monday.

Rainfall through Saturday will be significant with a widespread, up to an inch, possible.

The Sunday-Monday system will bring yet another potentially significant amount of rainfall.