Minnesota Is Really Heating Up. Literally

With the deep freeze approaching, it's a bit strange to relate that Minnesota is one of the fastest warmings states. The House Energy and Climate Finance and Policy Division meets each Tuesday and Wednesday while the legislature is in session to discuss climate change and how it is affecting Minnesota.

Some of the information shared by University of Minnesota professors Tracy Twines and Peter Reich during a recent session was that minnesota's winters are warming at a rate 13 times faster than its summer. They also stated that Minneapolis and Mankato are among the fastest-warming cities.

Both professors say they expect more freeze-thaw cycles each winter. One negative arising out of this is perhaps a lack of dormancy for apples resulting in irregular flowering and less production.  Higher temperatures in Minnesota will lead to more precipitation yet the state will experience drier conditions in late summer according to Reich. Warmer winter temperatures could mean that pests that normally couldn't survive a Minnesota winter may soon be able to do so.

Twine added the by the end of the century average rainfall in August could drop by up to 60 percent in some parts of Minnesota. Either way this information doesn't paint a pretty picture.