Steamy weekend ahead; 90 degrees with high humidity

Welcome to a properly steamy summer weekend in Minnesota.

Our air mass this weekend is a combination of that large western heat dome edging east into Minnesota and a steamy flow of tropically humid air blowing in on southerly breezes from the Gulf of Mexico.

Highs Saturday under hazy sunshine will reach 90 degrees across most of Minnesota. That includes locations all the way north like Brainerd, Bemidji, Ely, the Iron Range, Fargo, N.D., and even Duluth.

Sunday brings similar heat values to the south, but a chance of storms in the north will keep temperatures a few degrees cooler.

Out humid air mass is courtesy of a broad southerly flow all the way from the Gulf of Mexico. The air mass flowing north into Minnesota is feeding a tongue of tropical low-level moisture right across the state. Dew points in the 70s have arrived as of Friday afternoon.

Rain chances north

The best chance for rain and thunderstorms this weekend favors the northern half of Minnesota.

Most forecast models favor a few scattered storms in northwestern Minnesota through Saturday. There is a slight risk for severe weather across northwestern Minnesota on Saturday.

A better chance for storms arrives Sunday across the north. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s NAM 3 km model shows a possible line of storms developing Sunday afternoon from western to northeastern Minnesota:

The best chance for rain and storms in the Twin Cities and southern Minnesota favors the overnight hours Sunday night into Monday.

Our southerly breezes this weekend are also keeping wildfire smoke at bay over most of Minnesota. Air quality should remain in the moderate rating on the ground with smoke aloft over Minnesota.

Look for more vivid sunsets and sunrises this weekend as the sun passes through the thicker smoke layer near the horizon.