St. Cloud, MN Weather Forecast

Cold Front Came Through Near Midnight, But Only Northern Minnesota Got Much Rain

Central and southern Minnesota didn't get the important rainfall that the dry conditions needed. The low pressure system moving northeastward from central Saskatchewan to northern Manitoba (see College of DuPage North America mid-level water vapor loop) pulled the cold front into Minnesota overnight (see 24-hour loop of NWS WPC Continental US surface maps), but most of the showers and thunderstorms moved through North Dakota and northern Minnesota (see College of DuPage north central US radar loop) into southern Manitoba and northwestern Ontario (see College of DuPage North America clean infrared satellite loop). International Falls picked up 1.09 inch, and Hibbing picked up 0.59 inch. The storms further south were more spotty, so much of central and southern Minnesota got missed. The St. Cloud Sky Central Airport didn't get any measurable rain, but there were wind gusts to 37 MPH when the front went through around 1 AM (see NWS: last 72 hours of St. Cloud observations).

Cooler Today, Drier Today Through Thursday

The Canadian air mass came in right behind the cold front. Dew points have fallen into the more comfortable 50's in western Minnesota with some near-50 dew points in North Dakota (see lower left number on the NWS Aviation Weather Center METAR map). So the humidity will be more comfortable today through Thursday. And, temperatures will be cooler with highs in the 70's today, near 80 tomorrow, and in the lower half of the 80's on Thursday. When the winds calm down tonight and tomorrow night, low temperatures will drop into the 50's both nights with even some 40's possible late tonight. There may be some areas of fog, since the winds will be light.

Probably No Air Quality Issues Mid-Week

And, I am much less worried about the air pollution situation. We still have smoke aloft (see gray areas on the EPA fire and smoke map), but the air quality index remains moderate across Minnesota (see Minnesota Pollution Control Agency latest Minnesota air quality index). And, the high AQIs that were in Montana and the western Dakotas yesterday have retreated to the Denver area and been restricted to the vicinity of the major Washington and Idaho fires. The MPCA has been forecasting no worse than moderate AQI through the middle of next week, and I have to honor that they've been more accurate than I on this issue.

The heat isn't expected to be as intense in the northern Rockies and Plains during the next several days (some orange in the Dakotas by the weekend on the NWS Heat Risk forecast). The really intense heat isn't expected to redevelop until late in the weekend. Minnesota is expected to warm up a bit later this week. Highs will return to the upper 80's on Friday, but we are forecast to be near the front separating the true heat from the leftover cooler air that we will have during the mid-week period. The forecasts are only noting modest amounts of moisture to return, so dew points may only reach the merely noticeable upper 50's by Friday and perhaps the uncomfortable 60's over the weekend. There will also be a series of low pressure systems moving through the main storm track, which will still be in Canada, but a bit closer to the US border. That will set us up for uncertain, but mostly small chances for showers and thunderstorms. I have the best chance of thunderstorms (only 1 in 3; see Days 3-7 on the NWS WPC quantitative precipitation forecast) on Friday and the chances aren't great.

The heat is expected to get more intense by late in the weekend (return of red paint on the NWS Heat Risk forecast). At this point, it is forecast to be to our south (Nebraska and Iowa and points south) with the front separating the heat from the cooler air somewhere in Minnesota. However, that could easily be off, especially if one of the Canadian storms is stronger or tracks closer to the US border. So, I still won't venture a guess about either the temperatures (how hot we may be) or the chance of precipitation any day from Saturday into early next week. 

July 2026 St. Cloud Weather Summary Available

Besides the drier than average and hotter than average conditions seen in July, my July 2026 St. Cloud weather summary that St. Cloud had more 90-degree highs than any July since 2006. And, the dry conditions date back to late last summer, falling more than 8 inches short of average.