Sunshine and warmth have been pretty scarce in June, but we could see more of both the next two months. (Cam Lee/northeastNOW)

By Cam Lee

Future forecast

Slightly above normal temperatures possible for summer months: Environment Canada

Jun 20, 2024 | 3:23 PM

The official start of summer began Thursday, but the weather during the month of June hasn’t exactly been summer-like so far.

Most of the province has seen more days with rain and cooler temperatures this month.

Environment and Climate Change Canada Meteorologist Natalie Hazell said they typically don’t do forecasts specifically for summer or other solstices. However, she told northeastNOW their forecast for June, July, and August had a signature for above-normal temperatures across most of the prairies.

“The signature is stronger in the east than it is in the west and Saskatchewan is kind of split that way, but even where the signal is strong it’s still for an above-normal temperature for June-July-August,” Hazell explains.

The forecast is a bit hard to use, Hazell admits. She said they are unsure if the above-normal temperatures are going to come in one big heatwave and the rest will be in the normal range, or if it will be slightly above normal most of the time.

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“We don’t have information that gives us that precision or those details,” said Hazell.

According to Hazell, one Environment Canada forecast for the period from June 24 to July 22 shows above-normal temperatures for northern areas of Saskatchewan starting next week, while the remainder of the province will start seeing temperatures above normal starting around mid-July.

“It might take a bit of time for that to happen. We’ve had some very cool conditions recently and those look like they’re going to continue a little bit or get closer to normal sometime this week.”

Last summer saw temperatures reach well into the 30-degree range at times in the region, with hot, dry conditions leading to a record-setting year for wildfires in Saskatchewan. Hazell said the models don’t see long stretches with such extreme weather in our future this summer.

Hazell said the precipitation forecast is less certain in general. Northeast Saskatchewan, including Melfort, does not have a dominant trend for the summer months so it’s in the normal range, while further north and southwest areas there’s a suggestion of a below-normal amount of precipitation.

The normal high temperature for this time of year is 23 C, with the average lows around 10 C. Hazell said those go up slightly into July and August, which are generally the two hottest months of the year in the province.

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Cam.lee@pattisonmedia.com

On X: @northeastNOW_SK