Just to clarify, we’ve been sticking the fall photos not only on this homepage, but on our Fall Colors page, too. There’s a link on the right hand side of this homepage, or you can get there by clicking here. You can also find links to the foliage reports in Minnesota, Iowa, and Wisconsin on that page if you scroll to the bottom.

Shown October 15th on the NewsCenter at Noon:

Jeannie took this on October 11th as the Hiawathaland Corvette Club went on a run from Owatonna to Trempealeau, WI. Jeannie says they took some of the back roads and saw some terrific scenery and fall colors.

I can only agree with Jeannie and the others sending in their fall photos, the color is spectacular around southeast Minnesota. I was able to get out to Winona on Tuesday, and even made it over to Perrot State Park in Trempealeau. I would share the 100 photos I took, but it would be a little excessive.

Posted under KTTC, weather

Featured on the 5, 6, and 10pm news

Walking the trails on IBM property

Brenda’s was taken at Silver Lake in Rochester, MN on Sunday, October 12, 2008

…a tree that we saw on Sunday on our Fall Leaf Trip in between Lake City and Wabasha along Hiway 61. What was so spectacular was the different colors on the same tree.

Send your fall photos to weather@kttc.com

Posted under KTTC, minnesota, Viewer Pics

Sharon took this picture on the road to Oxbow Park

Joe took this picture of his home…from his airplane.

Ben took this picture entering Le Roy from the east

Thanks to Sharon, Joe, and Ben for sending in these pictures!  Send us your fall photos… weather@kttc.com

Posted under Viewer Pics, weather

I typically (try to) put the photo friday pictures over in the appropriate section. Since we’ve been asking for fall photos and receiving quite a few, I wanted to share them with you here on the main page. If you’ve got a fall photo you’d like to send us, please do so at weather@kttc.com.

Greg took this picture here in Rochester on Cascade Lake last Saturday morning. He says it was the “first frost for us this morning, so the lake mist put the sunrise in full splendor.”

Joe Connell is a local pilot who was out flying his homebuilt last Saturday morning when he took this beautiful shot. The colors look great and should be even closer to peak (if not there already) this weekend.

Posted under KTTC, Viewer Pics

Me and Sparty

My boy and Sparty

Mayo taking the field

Chuck taking down the live shot for weather at 5 & 6

Enjoy the games this evening! Weather like this is fleeting this time of year…

Posted under KTTC, Rochester, weather

Photo taken by Tracy Sholes of Dorchester, Iowa. Please send your fall photos to weather@kttc.com and we may feature them here and/or on-air.

For the first time since the 20th of May, 2008 (133 days), our low this morning dropped to the 30s.  That will be an easy task tonight into Thursday morning too. 

As far as what to expect for the month of October–we all know October can bring topsy-turvy weather from hot, fall afternoons (record high of 93° on October 3rd, 1997 and 80° as late as October 29th) to wicked snow storms (Halloween of 1991, eh?).  On average, temperatures range from highs of 64° on the first to 48° on the 31st.  Lows range from 43° on the first to 31° to the 31st.  The one-day record snowfall in October is 5.0″ on the 22nd, and that was in 1979.

Prevailing winds in October are still out of the south for us, but in November, that prevailing wind direction is out of the northwest.  Enjoy November while we’ve got it!

Posted under climate, KTTC, weather

A snowstorm hit the region.  Yikes.  Click here for more from the NWS La Crosse…

From September 24th through September 26th 1942, an early season winter storm moved through the Northern Plains, Upper Mississippi River Valley, and Great Lakes.  This system produced measurable snow across much of western and southern North Dakota; northern and eastern South Dakota; Minnesota; Iowa; Wisconsin; northern half of Illinois; northeast Indiana; Upper Michigan; and northern and southwest Lower Michigan.  In many places of Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, and northern Illinois, this was earliest measurable snow ever recorded.  The highest snowfall total was 9 inches at Sauk Centre.  Parts of northern Missouri saw their earliest traces of snow. 

Posted under severe weather, weather

Scroll to the bottom for Fall Foliage Report links!

October 27th, 2008

October 10th, 2008

October 9th, 2008

October 5th, 2008

October 4th, 2008

October 4th, 2008

September 29th, 2008:

September 25th, 2008:

A few fall photos are beginning to trickle in to the weather office.  If you’ve got a picture of our beautiful fall foliage that you’d like to share, please email it to weather@kttc.com.  Our peak season looks like it’s going to be the last week of September and first week in October…possibly just a little later in far southeastern portions of Minnesota and north Iowa.

For the latest fall color reports from around the state, visit the Minnesota DNR Fall Colors Page.  For Wisconsin, visit travelwisconsin.com, and for Iowa, visit the Iowa DNR site.

Posted under KTTC

The Storm Prediction Center has stuck a good chunk of Minnesota and Iowa in a slight risk for severe weather today. When’s the last time we talked about a risk of severe weather? Sparring an extensive moment googling the weather blog, it’s been at least a couple of weeks. Anyway, while I’m not anticipating a widespread severe weather event today, there could be a few storms on the stronger side this evening and through the early overnight hours. High winds would be the biggest threat in our area. Enjoy a breezy and warm first full day of Autumn!

Speaking of which – I saw some trees taking their cues for their fall show during a trip I just took to Wisconsin. It got me thinking about where the fall colors are. They’re starting to appear: tinges of oranges and yellows and reds starting to glow admist the green foliage. We’ll see what’s regarded as the “peak” foliage times from the end of September to mid-October (see below). The DNR has a good list of conditions that affect the overall color and brightness of the leaves. You can read about that by clicking here.

(Left: Colors as of September 22nd; Right: Average Peak for MN)

What are you finding for fall colors? Email us your photos and tell us where they are at. We’ll try to get a good collection going, maybe good enough to inspire you to take a quick weekend getaway.

Posted under climate, KTTC, severe weather, weather

It’s quiet.  Really quiet.  Almost too quiet.  It’s so quiet here I have no idea what to write about that might be of any interest to the casual observer.  Ted mentioned (yesterday) the fact that astronomical fall begins tomorrow (Monday, September 22nd, 2008) at 10:44am CDT.  Is that the official start to fall?  Merriam-Webster defines ‘official’ (in the adjective sense) as

prescribed or recognized as authorized <an official language> c: described by the United States Pharmacopeia or the National Formulary

There are limited ways to define the beginning of autumn (or any season for that manner), and the easiest and most sensible way (in my bold opinion) to make it “official” is to base the beginning of any season on equinox and solstice.  We call this ’Astronomical Autumn’.  Clearly our calendar makers agree this is the beginning of the season.  However, we meteorologists, because we have a penchant for quantifying statistics within a reasonable timeframe, break our seasons into 3-month increments for ease of record keeping.  ‘Meteorological autumn’ started September 1st and will end November 30th. 

As far as I can tell, there isn’t anything “official” about the beginning of any season by the definition of the word.

Either way…the leaves are changing, trout season is coming to a close in southeast Minnesota, and there are 94 shopping days until Christmas.

Posted under Astronomy, weather