Third Annual MPR Midday
State Fair Weather Quiz
1999 Edition

On Thursday, August 26, University of Minnesota Meteorologist and Climatologist Mark Seeley appears on Midday with Gary Eichten, answering questions about the weather and presenting this annual "weather quiz." What's your knowledge of Minnesota weather? Take the quiz to find out (answers below).

What is the most common prevailing wind direction during the State Fair?
A. North - North West
B. South - South West
C. North - North East
D. South - South East
Based on historical frequency, what is the chance of getting rain on any given day during the State Fair? (plus or minus 10 percent)
A. About 10%
B. About 30%
C. About 50%
D. About 70%
In the late 19th century a flag display system was used to indicate the expected weather at the State Fair on any given day. What type of weather was indicated by a white flag and what type was indicated by a blue flag?
A. White = Too Windy   Blue = Just Right
B. White = Snow   Blue = Clear
C. White = Fair   Blue = Rain
D. White = Rain   Blue = Clear
How many Twin Cities daily weather records set in the last decade of the 19th century (1891-1900) still stand today? (including daily max/min temps, precipitation and snowfall)
A. Less than 10
B. Less than 50
C. Less than 70
D. More than 100
What is the highest temperature ever measured in Minnesota during the month of March? (the other three never happened)
A. 10 degrees F at Minneapolis, 5/21/1918
B. 84 degrees F at Ely, 2/13/1960
C. 98 degrees F at New Canada, 8/23/1922
D. 88 degrees F at Montevideo, 3/23/1910
1999 produced one of the ten greatest snowfalls ever recorded in the Twin Cities? When did this occur and how much was it? (the other three never happened)
A. Mar. 8-9, 1999; 16 inches
B. Feb. 18-19, 1999; 14 inches
C. Jan. 21-22, 1999; 22 inches
D. Dec. 28-29, 1999; 14 inches
What did Professor John Winthrop of Harvard University, Henry David Thoreau of literary fame, explorers Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, statesman Benjamin Franklin, and President Thomas Jefferson all have in common?
A. All were people who flew kites.
B. Each one has had a hurricane named after them.
C. All three have subsitited for Mark Seeley on MPR.
D. All were weather observers and kept diaries.
July 30, 1999 saw a new record-high dewpoint set in the Twin Cities. What was this oppressively high dewpoint?
A. 81 Degrees F
B. 84 Degrees F
C. 92 Degrees F
D. 88 Degrees F
All tornadoes form within the clouds aloft and then descend toward the Earth's surface?
A. True
B. False
Since official records began in 1891, how many times has the overnight minimum temperature in the Twin Cities remained at 80 degrees F or above?
A. Less than 5
B. Between 5 and 10
C. Between 10 and 20
D. More than 20
On average, how many hail-loss claims are filed in Minnesota each year
A. Less than 25
B. Between 25 and 50
C. Between 50 and 100
D. More than 100
What record setting weather occurred in northern Minnesota on June 1st of this year (1999)?
A. Record wind gusts
B. Record rainfall
C. Record low temperature
D. Record cold daytime high temperature
On the MPCA's Pollution Standard Index for measuring air quality, (particulates, ozone, carbon monoxide and sulfure dioxide) are there health implications for a reading of 98?
A. Yes
B. No
What is the latest date in the spring when a measurable snowfall has occurred in Minnesota?
A. 1 inch at Tower, May 31, 1897
B. 1/2 inch at New Canada, June 1, 1907
C. 1/4 inches at Frostbite Falls, July 15, 1957
D. 1 inch at St. Paul, August 1, 1867
On a statewide basis, what was the wettest decade of the 20th century in Minnesota?
A. The First Decade
B. The '40s
C. The '60s
D. The '90s
On July 20, 1999 a new weather record was set in the Twin Cities as well, yet the high temperature was 72 degrees F and the low was 68 degrees F? So what was record setting about that?
A. Lowest ever daily temperature range in July.
B. Fastest ever daily temperature range in July.
C. Slowest ever daily temperature range in July.
D. The least anybody had to complain about in July.
What do Virgil, Emily, Cindy, and Dennis have in common?
A. They are all bodyguards for Governor Ventura
B. Amateur Twin Cities jazz quartet made up of meteorologists
C. Names of current tropical storms, hurricanes, or typhoons
What is a brickfielder?
A. A hot, dusty wind off the deserts of Australia
B. A bricklayer's apprentice
C. Gary Eichten playing shortstop
What is the Jevon's Effect?
A. The hypnotic effect of viewing complex weather maps
B. The effect of atmospheric humidity on violin strings
C. The disturbance in air flow around a rain gauge
What is the Dvorak Technique?
A. Blame a busted forecast on the computer model
B. Interpreting tropical-storm intensity from satellite imagery
C. Counting the hairs on the woolly bear catepillar

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