BACK TO YOU, CATHY AND BRIAN.

>> Cathy: YOU ARE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT, OF COURSE WE DO LOVE TO TALK ABOUT THE WEATHER HERE IN THE GREAT STATE OF MINNESOTA.

WE THOUGHT IT WAS GOING TO BE A BEAUTIFUL DAY TODAY AT THE STATE FAIR AND IT IS A GREAT DAY BUT NOT REALLY WITH THE WEATHER.

>> AT LEAST WE HAVE A ALSO SOMETHING TO BLAME HERE.

>> Cathy: A GREAT DAY WITH MARK SEELEY.

SO WE -- MARK IS ONE OF OUR GREAT FRIENDS HERE, OF COURSE, MINNESOTA PUBLIC RADIO, YOU LISTEN TO HIM EVERY FRIDAY ON MORNING EDITION WITH ME.

WE'VE BEEN TOGETHER FOR HOW MANY YEARS?

>> 24.

>> Cathy: 24 YEARS.

GEEZ, I TELL YA.

OF COURSE, MARK, LONGTIME PROFESSOR AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA, RETIRED, JOINS US ON "ALMANAC" OCCASIONALLY AND HE IS THE AUTHOR OF THE "MINNESOTA WEATHER ALMANAC."

GIVE IT UP FOR MARK SEELEY.

>> YEAH.

THANK YOU.

THANK YOU.

IT'S ALWAYS A PLEASURE TO BE HERE.

I LIKE TALKING ABOUT THE WEATHER.

I'M PRIVILEGED TO TALK ABOUT THE WEATHER BECAUSE THE WEATHER IS ABOUT US.

>> Cathy: YEAH, IT SURE IS.

>> IT'S WHAT WE ENJOY AND FROLIC BUT ALSO WHAT WE ENDURE.

>> Cathy: THAT'S FOR SURE IN THE STATE OF MINNESOTA.

SO WE'VE ENDURED A VERY WET SUMMER, WOW.

>> WE SURE HAVE.

SINCE APRIL -- WE MENTIONED THIS THIS MORNING ON THE AIR WAVES, CATHY.

SINCE APRIL, WE HAVE MANY OBSERVERS AROUND THE STATE THAT ARE ON A RECORD-SETTING PACE FOR RAINFALL AND NOT ONLY IN TERMS OF LARGE QUANTITIES OF RAINFALL, THE BIG THREE-, FOUR-, FIVE-INCH RAINS, BUT WE HAVE PLACES LIKE WELLS AND FARIBAULT AND ELGIN DOWN IN WABASHA COUNTY AND A FEW PLACES, THE FREQUENCY'S BEEN REMARKABLE, ABOUT HALF OF THE DAYS OF THE GROWING SEASON HAVE BROUGHT AT LEAST A TRACE OF RAIN, WHICH IS REMARKABLE.

YOU MIGHT AS WELL BE LIVING IN THE TROPICS.

>> ARE WE SEEING MORE OF THE POP-UP STORMS?

SOME OF THESE TIMES IT'S 10, 20% AND WE STILL GET REALLY WET.

>> YEP, YEP.

I WOULD NOT WANT TO BE A FEDERAL EMPLOYEE FOR THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE THIS YEAR AND BE EVALUATED ON MY RAINFALL FORECASTS BECAUSE WE'VE MISSED A LOT, TO BE HONEST.

>> Cathy: AND WHY IS THAT?

WITH ALL THE TECHNOLOGY, WHY WAS -- TODAY'S -- WE HAD RAIN TODAY AND IT WAS A 20% CHANCE AND IT WAS RAINING.

>> YEAH, YEAH.

PARTLY BECAUSE WE'VE BEEN SO MOIST, THE ATMOSPHERE IS SO FULL OF WATER VAPOR THAT ALMOST ANY LITTLE DISTURBANCE MIGHT TRIGGER ENOUGH VERTICAL LIFT THAT WE GET MAYBE IN SMALL, ISOLATED SHOWERS, SOMETHING LIKE THAT.

WE'VE BEEN PERSISTENTLY ENDURING A HIGH-WATER VAPOR CONTENT ATMOSPHERE AROUND US.

>> BUT THE SWEAT IS TO COME NEXT WEEK, SOUNDS LIKE.

>> THAT'S RIGHT, THAT'S RIGHT.

STARTING SUNDAY THROUGH TUESDAY WILL PROBABLY BE THE WARMEST DAYS OF THE FAIR, AND THEN CHANCES FOR SHOWERS NEXT THURSDAY AND FRIDAY, SO IF YOU'RE PLANNING ON COMING BACK TO THE FAIR AT THE END OF NEXT WEEK, MAYBE THINK ABOUT AN UMBRELLA.

>> IT'S THAT WURZER WEATHER THAT WE TALK ABOUT.

>> Cathy: I DO LIKE THE WURZER WEATHER, HOT AND MUGGY, IT'S TRUE.

IT'S CRAZY TO THINK ABOUT THE WEATHER WE'VE HAD AND RIGHT ON THE HEELS OF A PRETTY LENGTHY DROUGHT.

>> YES, A REMARKABLE TURNAROUND.

THREE YEARS OF DROUGHT ACROSS THE STATE, RATHER SEVERE ON THE TREES.

WE'VE LOST A LOT OF TREES, CATHY, ACTUALLY, FROM THREE YEARS OF DROUGHT, AND THEN NOW WE HAVE HIGH VOLUME FLOW ON ALL OUR WATERSHEDS.

- WE'VE -- I THINK WE TALKED ABOUT THIS, TOO.

I HAVEN'T -- I'VE BEEN TRACKING THE WEATHER NOW ABOUT 50 YEARS AND I HAVE NEVER RECALLED ONE YEAR WHERE THE FOOTPRINT OF SURPLUS MOISTURE WAS SO EMPHATIC ON OUR STATE LANDSCAPE.

97% OF THE MINNESOTA LANDSCAPE IS SHOWING HIGH SURPLUS MOISTURE THIS YEAR, WHICH IS UNBELIEVABLE IN HISTORICAL CONTEXT.

>> BRIAN: I'M GOING TO SHIELD MYSELF AS I ASK THIS, BUT COLD, WET, WINTER OR SOMETHING MORE MILD?

>> Cathy: STOP, STOP, GET THOSE WORDS OUT OF YOUR MOUTH.

>> THE GUESS RIGHT NOW IS PAY ATTENTION TO La NIÑA, IT'S VERY SLOW IN DEVELOPING, AND RIGHT NOW IT'S PROJECTED TO BE A WEAK -- A WEAK EPISODE, SO I THINK WE'RE GOING TO HAVE A WARM FALL.

I THINK IT'S GOING TO CONTINUE WET, THAT'S WHY WE MIGHT SET RECORDS BY THE END OF THE YEAR, AND THEN I THINK, AS WE GET DEEPER INTO WINTER, IF La NINA DOES HAVE AN EFFECT, THAT'S WHEN WE MIGHT SEE THE COLD WEATHER, BRIAN, MAYBE JANUARY, FEBRUARY, SOMEWHERE IN THERE.

WE MIGHT GO BELOW NORMAL.

BUT I DON'T THINK RECORD-SETTING.

>> BRIAN: SO I CAN KEEP THE SNOWBLOWER IN THE BACK -- >> KEEP IT HANDY BUT I THINK YOU MIGHT USE IT MORE THE SECOND HALF OF WINTER.

>> Cathy: SO WE'RE GOING TO DO THE STATE FAIR WEATHER QUIZ, THE TWO OF US HERE AT THE MPR BOOTH.

WHAT IS THE ODDIST STATE FAIR WEATHER THING THAT'S EVER HAPPENED, DO YOU THINK?

>> BOY, I THINK THE 1977 WASH-OUT OF THE STATE FAIR GRANDSTAND.

>> Cathy: I KNEW HE'D KNOW THIS.

>> AUGUST 30th, 1977, OVER 4 INCHES OF RAIN IN JUST A FEW HOURS AND THE GROUNDS WERE SO FLOODED THAT PEOPLE EVEN HAD TO GET RESCUED FROM THE GROUNDS BECAUSE THEIR MOBILITY WAS LIMITED WITH ALL THE WATER ON THE GROUND.

>> Cathy: SEE, I KNEW HE'D KNOW.

Dr. MARK SEELEY, UNIVERSITY