A northwestern Minnesota hospital is downsizing to offer only emergency care. We learn what it could mean for rural healthcare practices across the state.

And we talk weather — on the surface of the sun. One Minnesota scientist is preparing for the pitfalls of solar storms.

A new documentary is out about Minnesota’s iconic professional wrestler, dubbed the Clawmaster. We talk to him and his son, the creator of the film.

If you have seen the stage production of the Lion King, you know it’s magnificent. But it can be overwhelming for some. A Minneapolis theater is making the show accessible.

And Thursday means sports! We get an update on the Timberwolves in the playoffs and more.

The Minnesota Timberwolves have two more days to prepare for their rematch against the Phoenix Suns in the first round of the NBA Playoffs. They had a great season but they have yet to beat the Suns this year.

Wally Langfellow and Eric Nelson joined MPR News host Cathy Wurzer to talk about the Wolves and all the week’s top sports news. Wally is the founder of Minnesota Score Sports Magazine and Eric is the Vikings reporter for CBS Sports. Together, they host the sports talk show 10,000 Takes.

Minnesotans who watched professional wrestling on television in the 1960s, 70s, and 80s may remember a gruff-voiced, goose-stepping, bald guy who went by the name Baron Von Raschke. The Baron was a villain, known as a “heel” in the wrestling business, but fans loved him. In the early days of his career, he had something called a Prussian sleeper hold he’d put on opponents before pinning them to win — but not before beating up that opponent and taunting fans who were ringside.

The incredible story of Baron Von Raschke, real name Jim Raschke, is the subject of a documentary film that’s due to be streamed on Amazon, called “The Claw.”

The legendary hall of fame pro-wrestler and former substitute teacher hails not from Germany, but Hastings, Minn. He and his son Karl, who co-wrote and co-produced the film, joined MPR News host (and wrestling fan) Cathy Wurzer to talk about it.

It may sound strange, but the hospital in Mahnomen, Minnesota won’t have hospital stays for its patients anymore.

The tiny hospital is converting to a rural emergency hospital, leaving many rural Minnesotans far from in-patient care. It’s the first to do so in Minnesota after the option was created in at the start of 2023, but probably won’t be the last. These kinds of hospitals have emergency department services and observation care — however, that care cannot exceed an annual average of 24 hours.

Why make this move? The latest data from the Minnesota Department of Health shows that in 2019, 38 percent of rural Minnesota health care systems have been in the red for more than four years. For more on the situation, MPR News host Cathy Wurzer talked with Dale Kruger, the hospital administrator of Mahnomen Health Center.

The Minnesota Department of Health will hold a public hearing on April 30 at 6 p.m. on the transition to a rural emergency hospital.

Minnesotans love to talk about the weather. And that includes the weather wherever it’s happening, like on the surface of the sun.

The northern lights are a good example. Bursts of energy from the sun pull on the earth’s magnetic field and cause the neon green, purple and yellow waves we see in the sky. For a long time, that was the only way the sun’s geomagnetic storms were noticeable to life on this planet. But severe solar weather can also upset technologies we now depend on, like the electric grid and satellite systems. A severe storm — and it’s not clear if or when one will happen — could spell disaster for every sector of the economy.

University of Minnesota Agronomy and Plant Genetics Professor Kathryn Draeger has become fluent in these risks in recent years, after she went on sabbatical and found herself in a solar weather wormhole. She joined MPR News host Cathy Wurzer from this year’s Space Weather Workshop in Boulder, Colo.

The theater production of the Lion King is many things: iconic, awe-inspiring, exciting and overwhelming for people with sensory differences and disabilities. Hennepin Theater Trust partnered with Fraser, a local non-profit for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, to put on a sensory-friendly version of the show.

Its changes include lower sound levels, freedom to get up and move around the theater, sensory rooms and trained staff. The performance is Saturday at 2 p.m. at the Orpheum Theater in St. Paul.

Heather Thelen and her son Ben plan to attend and she joined MPR News host Cathy Wurzer to talk about it.

The family of Ricky Cobb II announced on Wednesday that they’re filing a lawsuit against two state troopers who were on the scene when he was shot and killed in July 2023. State trooper Ryan Londregan shot Cobb during an attempted arrest at a traffic stop, and his partner trooper Brett Seide was with him.

MPR News reporter Estelle Timar-Wilcox has been following the situation. She joined MPR News guest host Emily Bright for a debrief on the situation.

The American Academy of Pediatrics says racism can negatively impact the health of children and adolescents, and the doctor’s office is one of the places where kids may experience racial bias.

A team of Minnesota doctors asked Black and brown kids aged 11 to 18 about their experience in a recent study. Then, the researchers talked to their parents.

Dr. Emily McTate is a pediatric psychologist with the Mayo Clinic and one of the authors of a study published earlier this year. She joined MPR News guest host Emily Bright to share about the project and its findings.

Lawmakers are pushing to include a mandatory cellphone policy for Minnesota schools as part of the 2024 education policy bill. The bill is heading back to the Minnesota Senate after passing the House last week. The policy aims to curb student cellphone use in state high schools, citing a toxic culture around cellphones, distractions and deterring human interaction. DFL state Rep. Sandra Feist co-authored the bill after reading about how cellphones are severely affecting the development of children.

However, some teens are ahead of this bill. A small but growing number of young people have decided it's not worth it to have a smartphone. They’re taking control of their mental health and focus by ditching smartphones altogether. One of those young people is Leo Huppke, a sophomore at the University of Minnesota.

MPR News guest host Emily Bright spoke with both Feist and Huppke to hear about the ramifications of excessive cellphone use from both ends of the spectrum.

MPR News Chief Meteorologist Paul Huttner joined MPR News guest host Emily Bright to give us the latest on Minnesota weather.

He shared the latest rainfall numbers and whether it’ll make a dent in the weekly drought monitoring. The forecast seems to be brightening up, but with a bite—frost might be on the way. Plus, the possibility of adding a Category 6 to the hurricane scale.