Minneapolis locals can anticipate a mild mix of sun and rain this week, with temperatures that suggest an autumnal dance between summer's reluctance to leave and the impending chill of winter. According to the National Weather Service, there's a 20 percent chance of showers after 4 p.m. today, even as the city enjoys a high near 75 degrees with a light south-southeast breeze that will become west-southwest by the afternoon. This brief respite of the sun will soon give way to a slightly colder evening as the chance of precipitation slightly escalates to 30 percent, primarily before 7 p.m.
As the week unfolds, Wednesday is expected to bask in the sun, with a cooler high of around 56, while northwest winds will softly blow at around 10 mph. The calm of the night will mostly be clear with a low hovering around 43 degrees, and a gentle south wind will rustle at about 5 mph. But prepare to fetch your umbrellas by Thursday afternoon, as the likelihood of showers increases significantly after 1 p.m. Clouds will begin to crowd the sky, and temperatures are forecasted to peak near 65, with a decidedly stronger south wind of 10 to 15 mph.
Forecast predictions also indicate that Thursday nighttime won't escape unscathed as showers may persist until 1 a.m., though said chance diminishes to 40 percent. The sky is then predicted to clear, leaving behind a low of around 42 degrees. Winds will continue their wayward dance, shifting from south to north-northwest post-midnight.
Greeting the end of the workweek, Friday promises sunlight with a high of 58 degrees and what could be termed as a consistent north-northwest wind gently blowing at 5 to 10 mph. Friday night skies will remain mostly clear as the mercury dips down around 37 degrees, with the northwest wind calming to a whisper. The weekend, in a display of atmospheric generosity, will start with beaming sunshine on Saturday and persistent fair weather until Sunday night, bookending days in the upper fifties and nights that gradually warm from the low forties to 50 degrees.
Minneapolis might well consider itself fortunate as the weather takes a turn to warmer climes on Monday with partial sunlight and a high nearing the emblematic threshold of a 70-degree autumnal day. The south wind, perhaps to mark its presence, will pick up to 10 to 15 mph, blowing gutsy as high as 25 mph.
