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Shaded-relief map of McDonaldsville, Minnesota: rivers, roads, the city limits and where the water drains.
MINNESOTA · NORMAN COUNTY

McDonaldsville

157 people, 910 ft above sea level in Norman County.

910 ftElevation, city center
157People, 2024 estimate
34 sq miLand area
Sunny 43°
Sunny now Dew point 19° · S 7 mph · high 39°
City of McDonaldsville River Interstate 2 miles
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The McDonaldsville plate. Relief from Copernicus GLO-30; rivers and lakes from USGS NHD; watersheds from the USGS Watershed Boundary Dataset; roads and city limits from Census TIGER 2024.

MILE1
TODAY

Today in McDonaldsville

NWS forecast and National Blend of Models · updated 3:00 PM CST
RIGHT NOW Mahnomen County Airport (K3N8) · 3:55 PM
Sunny
43° Sunny Feels like 39° · high of 39° near 4 PM
WindS 7 mphno gusts
Humidity39%rising to 88% by morning
Pressure30.19 in →steady
Visibility10 mihaze-free
CloudsClear
UV index—no forecast
Dew point 19° · Dry42° by Monday: more humid
DryComfortableStickyMuggyOppressive
NEXT RAIN
Rain
Wednesday50% chance · showers
LIKELY AMOUNT—amounts come within 3 days
LAST RAINNov. 50.09 in · 9 dry days
ALERTS & OUTLOOKS
No watches or warnings for Norman County
NWS Grand Forks and the Storm Prediction Center · checked 4:16 PM
SUN & MOON
↑ 7:28 AM4:52 PM ↓
9 h 23 m of daylight, 3 minutes less than yesterday
Waxing crescent, 26% lit. Next full moon: Nov. 24.
AIR & POLLEN
24
GOODAir quality index · ozone
Tomorrow: None, good. No pollen source yet.

The next three days, hour by hour

Sky: clear, cloudy, night Rain likely National Blend of Models
SATURDAY, NOV. 14
SUNDAY, NOV. 15
MONDAY, NOV. 16
TUESDAY, NOV. 17
4p
7p
10p
1a
4a
7a
10a
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4p
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10p
1a
4a
7a
10a
1p
4p
7p
10p
1a
4a
7a
10a
1p
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
partly cloudy night
mostly clear night
partly cloudy night
partly cloudy day
mostly sunny
clear day
clear night
clear night
mostly clear night
partly cloudy night
mostly cloudy night
partly cloudy day
mostly sunny
mostly sunny
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
partly cloudy night
partly cloudy night
mostly cloudy night
mostly cloudy day
mostly cloudy day
partly cloudy day
TEMPERATURE °F
39°
30°
47°
39°
53°
41°
CHANCE OF RAIN
50%
WIND, MPH
9
10
10
10
12
13
15
16
16
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13
10
9
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14
HOW IT FEELS · DEW POINT
Dry: dew points 26 to 42° More humid: 42° by Tuesday

The next seven days, and how sure we are

Forecast, with the range 8 in 10 ensemble members agree on Normal, about 80° / 62°
SAT Nov. 14 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
39° 29°
0% rain — SSE 10 A
SUN Nov. 15 Mostly sunny; warmer Mostly sunny; warmer
48° 37°
0% rain — S 15, gusts 28 A
MON Nov. 16 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
54° 40°
0% rain — SSW 14 B
TUE Nov. 17 Mostly cloudy Mostly cloudy
52° 42°
10% rain — S 12 B
WED Nov. 18 Chance of showers Chance of showers
52° 38°
50% rain up to 0.1″ S 7 B
THU Nov. 19 Mostly cloudy; cooler Mostly cloudy; cooler
44° 32°
20% rain — NW 3 C
FRI Nov. 20 Showers likely Showers likely
44° 35°
60% rain up to 0.5″ ESE 9 C
How sure are we? AModels agree: highs within 4° BSome spread: within 8° CWide spread: check back
Range from the National Blend of Models percentiles · graded on Forecast Scores
AIR MAIL

Where today’s air came from

The air arriving over McDonaldsville about 5,000 feet above the ground was over the Gulf of Alaska three days ago, and over the Canadian Prairies a day ago, about 2,300 miles back along its path. It came down from about 11,800 feet up, warming and drying as it sank. Near the ground the air came from British Columbia; at 10,000 feet, from the Canadian Prairies. It feels dry all the same. Traced back 72 hours through NOAA’s hourly RAP analyses and the GFS beyond them, nine paths at each of three heights.

THIS WEEK IN 1953 Nov. 17, 1953

The hottest this week has been

74° on Nov. 17, 1953, the hottest reading for this week of the year since 1892. Next is 66° in 1923.

66°
74°
19231953
Source: NOAA RCC-ACIS, the Ada record since 1892.
MILE2
THE GROUND

What McDonaldsville stands on

McDonaldsville’s center stands about 910 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 890 ft to 940 ft, a difference of 50 ft: nearly flat ground.

Under the town center the state geologic map shows Calc-alkalic volcanic and volcaniclastic rocks (alkalic-volcanic), from the Neoarchean, 2.5 to 2.8 billion years old.

The section below crosses 4 rock units mapped at the surface.

Hendrum to Wild Rice, cut in half

A section west to east, 24 miles through the town center
900 ft1,000 ft1,100 ft MCDONALDSVILLE910 ftLow point870 ftHigh point of the line1,140 ft ← W · HendrumWild Rice · E →

Heights every 0.1 mile from the Copernicus GLO-90 surface model; vertical exaggeration about 64×. The colored band under the surface is the rock the state geologic map shows at the surface, not a picture of what lies beneath.

Rock at the surface along the line

Calc-alkalic volcanic and volcaniclastic rocks

Alkalic-volcanic. Age: Neoarchean, 2.5 to 2.8 billion years old. About 14 mi of the line.

Granitoid intrusion

Granitic. Age: Neoarchean, 2.5 to 2.8 billion years old. About 5 mi of the line.

Mafic metavolcanic rocks

Metabasalt, greenstone. Age: Neoarchean, 2.5 to 2.8 billion years old. About 4 mi of the line.

Magnetic intrusions, undifferentiated

Plutonic. Age: Archean. About 1 mi of the line.

From the USGS State Geologic Map Compilation (Horton and others, 2017), the states’ geologic maps joined at a common scale.

Heights from Copernicus GLO-90 (a surface model: it includes buildings and tree canopy); summits from USGS GNIS; rivers from USGS NHDPlus HR; rock from the USGS State Geologic Map Compilation.

MILE3
THE WATER

Where McDonaldsville’s rain goes

A raindrop that lands in McDonaldsville reaches Hudson Bay by way of the Marsh, the Red River of the North and the Nelson: about 1,050 river miles. Past the border it runs north through Canada to Hudson Bay.

THE WAY DOWN, TO SCALE
McDonaldsville≈ 1,050 mi · Hudson Bay
FROM THE CENTER OF MCDONALDSVILLE ≈ 1,050 mi to Hudson Bay Marsh → Red River of the North → Nelson

Lake on the way: Lake Winnipeg.

400 miles of the trip are on the Nelson.

Traced down the USGS NHDPlus V2.1 river network from the Census center point of McDonaldsville; river miles along the main stem, rounded.

MILE5
THE ALMANAC

McDonaldsville’s year

1991–2020 normals · records since 1892 · Ada, 2 mi northwest

McDonaldsville has a warm-summer humid continental climate. Summer afternoons average 81° in July; winter nights fall to about −4° in January. About 25 inches of rain fall in a normal year.

16°−4°21°−1°35°14°53°30°67°42°77°53°81°57°80°54°71°46°55°33°37°18°22°5° JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 1234 TODAY 25.0 in rain a year
Normal high to low, by month Record high to low, by day Rain by month Freezing
July, average81° / 57°high / low, the warmest month
January, average16° / −4°high / low, the coldest month
Rain a year25.0 inwettest months: June and July
Hottest on record111°FJuly 11, 1936
Coldest on record−53°FFebruary 15, 1936
Wettest day on record5.83 inAugust 7, 1941
Snowiest day on record13.0 inJanuary 26, 2004
90° days a year8none reach 100°
Nights at or below 32°181and 98 days that stay below freezing
Climate typeWarm-summer humid continentalKöppen Dfb

AROUND THE RING

1Freeze seasonfrom the first fall freeze, about Sept. 29, to the last in spring, about May 12 (median dates)
2Highs below freezingNov. 23 to March 12; normal highs stay below 32°
3Lows below freezingOct. 17 to April 22; normal lows fall below 32°
4Wettest stretchJune through August: 11.4 of the year’s 25.0 inches
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 McDonaldsville normally reaches 37° and falls to 19°. The record high is 67°, in 1953; the record low −20°, in 1919. The most rain on this date, 0.46 in, fell in 1971.

MONTH BY MONTH
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Normal high16°21°35°53°67°77°81°80°71°55°37°22°
Normal low−4°−1°14°30°42°53°57°54°46°33°18°5°
Rain, inches0.780.661.011.452.874.623.902.932.802.230.870.92
Record high53° (1981)65° (1958)78° (1967)100° (1980)107° (1939)104° (1933)111° (1936)104° (1976)101° (1936)95° (1922)76° (1893)60° (1939)
Record low−48° (2004)−53° (1936)−39° (1948)−12° (1899)12° (1967)27° (1897)30° (1895)31° (1895)17° (1929)−6° (1919)−35° (1896)−42° (1901)

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1892 at Ada, 2 miles northwest. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.

MILE7
ON THE NETWORK

Around McDonaldsville on the Forecast Network

Neighboring plates

Moorhead MN · 31 MI 31 miles southwest Fargo ND · 32 MI 32 miles southwest Grand Forks ND · 53 MI 53 miles northwest St. Cloud MN · 164 MI 164 miles southeast
FORECASTCITY
Map of McDonaldsville, Minnesota. Explore the plate
MINNESOTA · NORMAN

McDonaldsville

157 people, 910 ft above sea level in Norman County.

910 ftElevation
157People
34 sq miLand
Sunny 43°
SunnyDew point 19°
1

Today in McDonaldsville

NEXT 15 HOURS
Now mostly sunny 39° 0%
7p mostly clear night 32° 0%
10p partly cloudy night 32° 0%
1a mostly clear night 31° 0%
4a mostly clear night 31° 0%
7a mostly sunny 30° 0%
Rain
NEXT RAINWednesday · 50%
→
Sat0%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
29
39
A
Sun0%
Mostly sunny; warmer Mostly sunny; warmer
37
48
A
Mon0%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
40
54
B
Tue10%
Mostly cloudy Mostly cloudy
42
52
B
Wed50%
Chance of showers Chance of showers
38
52
B
Thu20%
Mostly cloudy; cooler Mostly cloudy; cooler
32
44
C
Fri60%
Showers likely Showers likely
35
44
C
Letters show how sure the forecast is: A, models agree; B, some spread; C, check back. Sample data.
THIS WEEK IN 1953 · NOV. 17, 1953

74°, the hottest this week of the year has been since 1892.

2

What McDonaldsville stands on

McDonaldsville’s center stands about 910 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 890 ft to 940 ft, a difference of 50 ft: nearly flat ground.

McDonaldsville, west to east McDonaldsville910 ftHigh point1,140 ft ← WE → 24 miles through the town center; vertical exaggeration about 122×. Colors: rock at the surface.
Elevation, center910 ft
Within 3 miles890 to 940 ft
Lie of the landNearly flat (50 ft of relief)
Rock at the surfaceCalc-alkalic volcanic and volcaniclastic rocks
Its ageNeoarchean, 2.5 to 2.8 billion years old
5

McDonaldsville’s year

McDonaldsville has a warm-summer humid continental climate. Summer afternoons average 81° in July; winter nights fall to about −4° in January. About 25 inches of rain fall in a normal year.

JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 1234 25.0 in
July, average81° / 57° · high / low, the warmest month
January, average16° / −4° · high / low, the coldest month
Rain a year25.0 in · wettest months: June and July
Hottest on record111°F · July 11, 1936
Coldest on record−53°F · February 15, 1936
Wettest day on record5.83 in · August 7, 1941
Snowiest day on record13.0 in · January 26, 2004
90° days a year8 · none reach 100°
Nights at or below 32°181 · and 98 days that stay below freezing
Climate typeWarm-summer humid continental · Köppen Dfb
1Freeze season · from the first fall freeze, about Sept. 29, to the last in spring, about May 12 (median dates)
2Highs below freezing · Nov. 23 to March 12; normal highs stay below 32°
3Lows below freezing · Oct. 17 to April 22; normal lows fall below 32°
4Wettest stretch · June through August: 11.4 of the year’s 25.0 inches
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 McDonaldsville normally reaches 37° and falls to 19°. The record high is 67°, in 1953; the record low −20°, in 1919. The most rain on this date, 0.46 in, fell in 1971.

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1892 at Ada, 2 miles northwest. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.
3

Where the rain goes

≈ 1,050 mito Hudson BayMarsh → Red River of the North → Nelson

A raindrop that lands in McDonaldsville reaches Hudson Bay by way of the Marsh, the Red River of the North and the Nelson: about 1,050 river miles. Past the border it runs north through Canada to Hudson Bay.

Lake on the way: Lake Winnipeg.

400 miles of the trip are on the Nelson.