August 2011 will be primarily known as dry month with just three days of significant rain. In the Twin Cities, we finished with 3.03-inches of rain this month, which is 1.27 inches below normal. This disagrees with the Climate Prediction Center outlook for August, which projected higher wetter than normal chances.
Across the state, precipitation was at or below normal from roughly St. Cloud, southward. Some areas picked up half or less as much rain than normal.
With the lack of rain across the southern parts of the state, it has resulted in minor drought conditions. Dry conditions also persist across the arrowhead of Minnesota.
During the month, we saw temperatures into the 80s largely with really no hints of autumn in the air. Considering the snowy and cold conditions we experienced to begin the year, I think it’s safe to say we’ve appreciated what Mother Nature has brought us to conclude the end of the meteorological summer. In the Twin Cities, the average monthly temperature for August is 71.2-degrees, and we finished the month 2.4-degrees above normal. The Climate Prediction Center projected close to normal temperatures during the month.
Looking at temperature across the state during the month, most of the state was at normal or slightly above normal, with above normal numbers the highest north of the Interstate 94 corridor.
So what is September looking like? Temperatures are expected to be typical for the month. The average monthly temperature is 68-degrees.
We began September and the start to the meteorological fall with a high temperature of 94-degrees, which happened to be warmer than anything that occurred during August. Temperatures this week are expected to settle into a more fall-like pattern with highs between 70 and 80 through most of next week.
As far as precipitation chances go, a dry month is expected with high probabilities of below normal conditions.
If the forecast holds, our ground won’t have nearly the moisture content heading into the winter months as it did last year to alleviate some of the spring flooding concern. Fall flooding shouldn’t be a problem this year. Farmers will be hurt, however, with the lack of moisture for fall crop harvest season, such as pumpkins. This year’s apple crop is expected to be good due to abundant rainfall early to the year and sunshine late in the growing season, but still need rain for the crop to finish strong.
RS
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