June 2015 Saint Cloud Weather Summary

Moisture Caught Up, Drier Second Half of June

June 2015 Saint Cloud Weather Summary

The heavy rains of May continued through the early part of June, but significantly slowed over the last 10 days of the month. So, June 2015 in St. Cloud ended up with 4.66 inches of rain, 0.49 inch above the June average. There was more rain in parts of central Minnesota just to the west, so the June total was up to 6-8 inches. Some of the heavy rain produced flooding in western Stearns County s some areas totaled Still, there were 3 days with at least an inch of rain, June 3, June 6, and June 20. That's the most June days with at least an inch of rain. The last time that happened was June 1990. That was one of only 5 months in St. Cloud history with more than 10 inches of rain. The 5 days with at least an inch of rain between May 16 and June 20 nearly equals the average for the entire year (5.5 days).

The 1.55 inch that fell on June 20 set a daily record. The old June 20 rainfall record was 1.30 inch in 1926.

When May and June are combined, St. Cloud has picked up 10.69 inches of rain, 3.57 inches above the 7.12 average. That ranks as the 25th highest May-June rainfall total in St. Cloud records. St. Cloud is shown as being within the portion of Minnesota which has 10-15 inches of rain since the start of May. This means that most of the dry regions shown earlier in the spring on the US Drought Monitor have disappeared.

The wet pattern of May and the first 20 days of June was caused by the persistence of the main North American storm track from the Northern Rockies into the Plains states. The Northern Plains were still spared the huge rainfall that fell further to the south in Oklahoma and Texas. However, during the past 10 days, the main storm track has moved a large distance. It still lies over the Northern Plains and Great Lakes, but the portion over western North America has moved well into British Columbia and Alberta. This has developed thanks to the strong high over the western third of the US. That system has allowed heat to spread from the Desert Southwest throughout the US Intermountain Region and, at times, southern British Columbia, southern Alberta, and the High Plains (see 10-day loop of high temperatures from SUNY-Albany through the National Weather Service). While a series of storms continues to pass through our area, they don't have quite as much deep moisture to play with. There were 5 days after June 20 with measurable rainfall, but the total rain produced was only 0.33 inch. There were a few heavier totals than that, but the storms have tended to be more scattered over the past week.

The persistent clouds and frequent rain during June tempered the summer heat. The June 2015 St. Cloud average temperature was 66.2°F, 0.6°F above average. The average high temperature (77.7°F) was nearly right on the average (77.5°F), but the frequently higher humidity kept low temperatures (54.7°F) more than a degree warmer than average (53.6°F).

There was only one day (June 9) with a high of at least 90 degrees. That's only the third day with a 90-degree high over the past 2 summers. The 2 days with a 90-degree high last summer tied for the 7th lowest count. St. Cloud hasn't seen a high of at least 97°F since 2011.

The early outlook for the start of July shows a continuation of the drier pattern seen in late June. Minnesota will remain on the edge of the big western heat, but there are no indications of any prolonged heat surge into Minnesota. There will continue to be occasional threats for thunderstorms, which are hard to pin down beyond a couple of days.

    June 2015 Statistics