Southern Minnesota endured its coldest stretch of weather in three years, with temperatures staying below zero for 96 consecutive hours. The cold snap ended on January 21st with a morning low of 19 degrees below zero.
The Fall of 2024 will go down in history as one of the warmest fall seasons on record for the Mankato/North Mankato area. With an overall average temperature of 53.6 degrees, this year comes in second place, just behind 1963, which holds the record at 54.9 degrees.
The rain has ended for most of us, leaving behind impressive totals ranging from 1 to 2 inches across southern Minnesota and northern Iowa. Here are some rain totals from across the region. If you have rain to report, drop us an email at weather@keyc.com.
The latest U.S. Drought Monitor was released Thursday morning and, for the first time since early August, shows improvement in the overall drought situation across much of Minnesota and Iowa.
It sure doesn’t feel like it, but we are almost one month into meteorological fall. If you’re wondering about these summerlike temperatures in September, you’re not alone. So far this September, our average temperature in the Mankato/North Mankato area is 67.5 degrees. That is 4.6 degrees warmer than our average September temperature of 62.9 degrees. This has been a trend, and it continues. Across the US, fall has warmed by an average of 2.5 degrees since 1970.
As we head into severe weather season, you will often hear terms like marginal, slight, enhanced or moderate risk of severe weather. But what do those terms mean?
Severe weather season is here, and with this being severe weather awareness week you are likely going to get blasted with lots of information regarding severe weather preparedness and safety. While every bit of that information is important, severe weather safety is really quite simple and comes down to this: Be prepared and know what to do and where to go when severe storms strike.
I’m starting to get a little nervous. Over the next few weeks, we will have all of the ingredients for a potential wildfire disaster. We’ve only had about 9.5 inches of snow in the Mankato area this winter season and the entire landscape of southern Minnesota and northern Iowa is extremely dry. Over the next couple of weeks, the combination of low humidity, warm temperatures, strong wind, and a lack of recent precipitation will create a perfect environment for fires that can easily get out of control and spread very quickly.
The Geminid meteor shower, one of the most spectacular annual meteor showers, is going to be at its peak over the next several days, and Meteorologist Shawn Cable says that weather conditions will be perfect for viewing. Here are some tips for a great experience:
The KEYC First Alert Weather Team has designated Wednesday and Thursday as “First Alert Days,” due to the expected onslaught of extreme heat and humidity. The temperature is expected to soar into the mid to upper 90s, but it’s the steamy 70+ degree dew point that will push the heat index, or “feels like” temperature, to a staggering 105 degrees or higher.
With clear skies expected over the next several days, a phenomenon called the Da Vinci Glow, also known as Earthshine, will be visible Monday evening through Wednesday evening. The Da Vinci Glow is named after Da Vinci himself, after he proposed a theory explaining why the moon’s surface glows after a lunar nightfall. His theory was actually correct and proves that “earthshine” makes the entire surface of the moon (known as the lunar disk) visible when there is just a fraction of the moon lit up by the sun.
Severe weather season is here, and being prepared is the key to keeping you and your family safe. As part of Severe Weather Awareness Week in Minnesota, a statewide tornado drill will take place on Thursday, April 20. A TEST Tornado Warning will be issued at 1:45 pm and again at 6:45 pm, with sirens sounding in communities across the state. This is a perfect opportunity for everyone to ensure they are prepared and know what to do in case of severe weather.
Around 2 inches of snow fell in the Mankato area on Monday. According to the KEYC News Now Weather Team, light snow will continue through Wednesday with an additional 2 to 3 inches of accumulation possible.
Since 1970, Mankato’s average summertime high temperature has increased by almost 2 degrees. If our current emissions trends continue, climate models suggest that by 2100, Mankato’s average summer high temperature could be 10.5 degrees warmer than it is today. That means our summers around and after 2100 will be as hot as summers in Amarillo, Texas, today. Throw in some good ol’ Midwest summertime humidity, and folks around here will be struggling through a lot of brutal, sweltering summer days.
While Doppler radar does a magnificent job of estimating rainfall amounts, an actual measurement with a rain gauge is so much better… And we need your help getting those measurements.
Today, April 12th, is the kickoff to severe weather awareness week in Minnesota and to start we will cover the difference between a warning vs a watch, make sure you have a plan in place, and ways to receive weather alerts.
It is winter hazard awareness week for the state of Minnesota and day one its all about refreshing what each alert means and how it will impact your day to day activities.
Strong to severe storms possible today across southeastern Minnesota, northeast Iowa, and southwest Wisconsin. Main threat will be large hail and damaging winds.
It's not the heat it's the humidity. Temps combined with high dew points will cause heat index values to soar to dangerous levels Tuesday and Wednesday.
Above average temperatures will continue through the week. Remember to limit time outside, especially during peak heating hours, stay hydrated, and watch for the signs of heat illness.
It is day two of severe weather awareness week in Minnesota. Today it's about severe weather, hail, and lightning. In today's weather blog we are looking at the criteria associated with severe thunderstorm warnings and why you should never ignore a severe thunderstorm warning.
Seasonal lag is the explanation to why January and February are still the coldest months on average even as daylight hours are increasing daily through both months.
Today is the start of meteorological winter. Our astronomical winter does not start until December 21st. What's the difference between meteorological and astronomical seasons and why do we have two? Find out in today's weather blog.
La Niña is a large scale weather pattern that occurs in the Pacific Ocean altering the weather pattern over parts of Indonesia, South America, and the United States.
Over the last decade the National Weather Service has been using the Watch, Warning, and Advisory system (WWA) to alert the public on impactful weather. Confusion in some of the terminology has the National Weather Service looking into changing things up.
A rare storm event unfolded Monday August 10th, 2020 from South Dakota down through Iowa, Illinois and parts of Indiana before weakening. This event is known as a derecho and today's weather blog breaks down the event plus why it classified as a derecho.
