Wind Chill Advisory

Get ready for some of the coldest air of the season. After a weak system cleared the region Friday, fresh arctic air has nothing preventing it from pivoting into the Midwest. Combine the intrusion of frigid air with some blustery northwesterly winds, and you have a perfect recipe for dangerously cold wind chill temperatures. In fact, the National Weather Service has placed the entire viewing area under a Wind Chill Advisory from midnight until 9 AM Saturday morning. These are issued when wind chills are expected to be at dangerous levels, and tonight's forecast meets that criteria.
As of 7 PM Friday evening, wind chill numbers are already in the single digits below zero to as cold as -10° in Galena. From this point, things will just continue to get colder through Saturday morning as wind continue to be blustery overnight. It is going to be one of those nights where you want to add blankets to the bed and crank the heat up. By the time we wake up on Saturday morning, wind chills could be flirting with -20°. Those are potentially dangerous levels, and shouldn't be taken lightly.

The good news with this arctic outbreak is that it will be short-lived. Temperatures will again fall into the single digits Saturday night, but that will be the last time for the foreseeable future. A moderating trend is expected next week across Northern Illinois and Southern Wisconsin -- in fact, the entire Upper Midwest will see milder temperatures heading into next week. Before we get there, we have to deal with the extreme cold. And, with cold of this magnitude being somewhat rare, it is important to remember a few things: