Extreme temperature swing slams Duluth

Posted at 4:55 PM on May 21, 2009 by Paul Huttner (1 Comments)

Lake Superior Maritime Visitor Center webcam shows a bright blue sky over Duluth Wednesday.

You can understand why residents along Duluth's lakefront were a little
"weather confused" Wednesday. They felt one of the most rapid temperature swings in Duluth history.

In just 20 minutes the temperature at Duluth's Sky Harbor Airport near the lake rose 40 degrees. The thermometer shot from 46 to 86 at 5pm. The temperature peaked at 88 degrees a few minutes later, and then plunged back to 45 within an hour.

As warm air surged into the Duluth area Wednesday, near the lake winds blew from the northeast off the frigid waters of Lake Superior. At 5pm the temperature at Duluth International Airport on top of the hill reached 88 degrees. Near the lake at Sky Harbor, it was 46 degrees, a difference of 42 degrees. Suddenly the warm southwest winds overcame the chilly lake breeze, and gusts of wind over 40 mph came rushing down the hill toward the lake. That's when the temperature spiked 40 degrees at the lakefront.

Keep in mind the average dirunal variation (the difference between the average daily high and low) for Duluth Wednesday is 23 degrees. That's 23 degrees in about 12 hours. Duluth did 40 degrees in 20 minutes.

The roller coaster temperature ride did not end there. Within an hour, winds again turned off the lake and the temperature dropped 43 degrees.

Here are the readings from Sky Harbor Wednesday. Observation time, wind, and temperature are in bold.

May 20 18:14 N 12 10.00 Fair CLR 45 39 29.60 NA
May 20 17:54 NW 7 G 35 10.00 Fair CLR 72 43 29.59 NA
May 20 17:34 SW 28 G 36 7.00 Fair and Windy CLR 88 43 29.57 NA
May 20 17:14SW 31 G 43 7.00 Fair and Windy CLR 86 45 29.58 NA
May 20 16:54 NE 9 10.00 Fair CLR 46 41 29.60 NA

This make take some digging, but this could be the most rapid temperature swing in Minnesota history. I know it's the biggest swing I've ever seen.

There's an old saying in Minnesota. "If you don't like the weather just wait 15 minutes." Wednesday in Duluth shows just how crazy Minnesota weather can be.

PH

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Comments (1)

We had a lovely day for my daughter's school Spring Concert, which was held at Bayfront Park. I live up on the hill and noted the temp at around 50 degrees at 1:30pm, but when I came down the hill to the park, I was very glad I had dressed in trousers and a fleece pullover, as many at the concert were dressed for late fall and wrapped in blankets. The sun was out, but the wind was blowing from the NNE at the time, cool enough to see your breath at times. When I drove up to Woodland to pick up my other daughter at 4pm, the winds had changed significantly, and I was starting to sweat with my layers. Again, the old adage applies to wait 15 minutes for a change, and remember to layer, even in late May!

Posted by Stephen Volkman | May 23, 2009 1:33 PM

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