Storm Chances Remain Isolated, Warm & Sticky Pattern Continues

The official start of astronomical summer this year isn't until June 20th. With that being said, the summertime heat and humidity has been on full blast this entire week. This warm and muggy stretch of weather aims to continue through the end of the week before relief arrives just in time for the upcoming weekend.

The past three days have started off differently weather-wise. On Tuesday morning, skies were mostly clear to begin the day, and Wednesday morning was a bit active as a round of showers & thunderstorms tracking into the area. Although we were off to a fairly dry start this morning, many were greeted to the sight of patchy fog as they took their first step out the door. But with the help of some morning sunshine, the fog was quick to burn off, leaving the Stateline with a mostly cloudy sky. Temperatures behind Wednesday's cold front have dropped by a handful of degrees, with many areas in the middle 60s to start the day.

Despite the slightly cooler start, the summer-like warmth will continue into our afternoon, allowing highs to climb into the mid to upper 80s. With the humidity factored in, it could feel closer to 90° at times. So if you have outdoor plans set for today, be sure to put on that sunscreen, and to have an ample amount of water to remain hydrated. A majority of our Thursday will remain dry under a partly sunny skies. Hi-res models continued to show a slight chance for a pop-up shower/thunderstorm late this afternoon into the early evening. However, the better chance for any thunderstorm activity will be during the early morning on Friday ahead of an approaching cold front.

As of this morning, that cold front is draped across far northwest Wisconsin and southern Minnesota. Ahead of this cold front, a complex of thunderstorms, or what we call an M.C.S, is likely to develop across the Upper Midwest later on today. As this line of thunderstorms approaches the Stateline, most hi-res models split this line into two separate complexes. One passing to our west, the other tracking into southern Wisconsin. This aims to keep the region's chances of seeing widespread activity on the lower side. However, a few storms could produce gusty winds.

Once the early-day chances come to a close, Friday's forecast will have a similar vibe to today's forecast. Skies will remain partly sunny through the afternoon and evening. As this cold front slowly slides southeastward through the region, it will have enough "oomf" needed to spark up another round of scattered showers and storms during the afternoon.The combination of this cold front, an an incoming high pressure system will bring relief from the summertime heat and humidity just in time for the weekend.