If June felt warm to you, the actual numbers back it up. June was hot enough in the Twin Cities to make it the 2nd warmest since records were kept starting in 1873.
June had an average temperature of 76.8 degrees, which is a massive (in meteorological terms) 7.1 degrees above normal.
The warmest June was back in 1933 with an average of 77.9 degrees. That year came during the Dust Bowl when much of the central part of the United States saw very hot weather and significant drought all summer.
It was also a very dry June with only 2.06 inches of precipitation for the month, and most of that coming in a short burst around Father’s Day. WCCO Meteorologist Paul Douglas also notes that it was the sunniest June we’ve had since the drought-stricken summer of 1988.
Regionally, St. Cloud and Eau Claire were also warm but not quite as warm as the Twin Cities. Both had their 4th hottest June on record.
While this is happening in Minnesota, the weather out West continues to be ever more extreme, with high temperature records being shattered in Oregon, Washington and across Western Canada. On Wednesday, the mercury hit an astonishing 121 degrees about 150 miles east of Vancouver, British Columbia where summer temps in the 80s are typically warm.
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Now that we’re into July, expect high temperatures to continue in Minnesota. The 4th of July weekend is looking warm with temps across the region into the 90s Sunday and Monday, and with very small chances of (much-needed) rain.
Douglas is also seeing some potential triple-digit heat in the long range forecasts, although for now he has his doubts.
“I'm skeptical of GFS model and a string of triple-digit days in mid-July, but after what we just witnessed in the Pacific Northwest and British Columbia, nothing would shock me right now,” Douglas said on Twitter after seeing four days of 100-degree temps forecasted July 12th-16th.
For farmers in Minnesota, the high heat and lack of rain is a terrible combination for crops. Curt Burns, a corn farmer in Sibley County, told Douglas on the WCCO Morning News that needing rain is just part of the issue. He says 90 plus degree heat is putting corn under stress.
“If we could stay in 82, 83 degrees, be 60 degrees at night, that would be wonderful, “Burns says. “We could handle being on the dry side. But it’s the heat. That’s what got us here three weeks ago and that’s what’s going to get us again here is the ninety-plus degrees that’s coming for the next few days. That’s really going to put the stress on the crop.”