Crazy South Dakota Weather: Heat Burst Tries to Cook Yankton
Everywhere I've been in the world, I get told that if you don't like the weather just wait a few minutes because the weather here is crazy! Outside of southern California, I don't think anywhere has super stable weather, things are always changing.
But, I will stand behind the idea that South Dakota is home to crazy weather swings.
Ever been in Rapid City and woken up to snow, then spent the afternoon on the golf course under the blazing sun until a thunderstorm rolled through and forced you back to the clubhouse? That life in the Black Hills.
On the east side of the state, we are deep into the 'Freeze in the morning, then melt in the afternoon' season.
Once, in Spearfish, SD the temperature was 4 degrees below zero. Then a couple of minutes later it was 43 degrees!
READ MORE: South Dakota's Strangest Day Ever Happened in Spearfish in 1943
A similar thing happened in Yankton, SD last week (September 21, 2024).
At around 6:00 AM, the National Weather Service in Sioux Falls recorded a temperature jump. In a matter of minutes, the temperature shot up from 70 to 90 degrees! At six in the morning!
The NWS called it a 'Heat Burst.' "It's when air from a weakening shower or storm heats up as it plunges to the surface," the Weather Service said.
As the rainstorm was fading, rain in the clouds started to evaporate as cold air came down and compressed the warmer air, heating it up more and pushing it to the surface.
That would have been the craziest thing to be out in. One second you're out for a morning walk in the crisp air. Then next, you feel like you're in a giant oven.
When Does Sioux Falls Usually Get its First Snow?
Gallery Credit: Ben Kuhns
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