Scattered thunderstorms developed yesterday and last night in western SD, but look how they fizzled as they tried to cross the Missouri River. The big “block” in the atmosphere to our east is the story for now and will it will dictate the rain patterns and temperature forecasts for several more days.
The rain in southwest SD was helpful overnight, with many areas in green getting at least .50″ of rain.
You can notice the difference now the past 7 days. East River areas are drying down at a much faster rate.
The short-term dry weather stressors are shown below on this map. We pay closer attention to this map as we get farther along into the growing season.
The drought monitor will be interesting to watch as well. Folks to the south in Nebraska and Kansas should be improving, while much of Iowa and Illinois will see more dry weather ahead.
The map below shows the trend the past 60 days. Sioux Falls will finish meteorological spring as the 4th driest on record at 3.32″.
The dry soil is also playing a role in warmer temperatures.
The pattern will remain the same for several more days. We can’t rule out a few scattered storms in the northeast this afternoon, extending into SW MN. Also watch the Black Hills for some scattered development later today.
Dew point forecast remain lack luster for now. We are not void of moisture, but the depth of water is not too impressive right now. That fetch of air from the Great Lakes will be a big part of the forecast for several more days.
The big block is shown below as a high pressure ridge that moves across the region the first few days of June. Most of the rain will move around the ridge, so until this breaks up, expect more of the same in the forecast.
The 10 day forecast is not wet for much of eastern KELOLAND. We average about an inch a week this time of the year, and the map below does not keep up with that pace. It will be wetter in western SD, however.
Here are the details of the forecast.
