Reinforcing Shots of Cold & Snow

The snow has ended across the region, but now we are watching the first blast of truly arctic air pour into the area from the northwest. Temperatures fall off nearly 20 degrees from Rockford to Dubuque, and that is behind a cold front moving through the area now. By the time we get to Sunday morning, temperatures will be in the single digits with wind chills below zero. This cold blast will last through Sunday with temperatures struggling to reach 10°. With blustery conditions expected, wind chills will likely remain below zero through the entire day.

Monday will be slightly milder with highs in the lower 20's. Snow showers will move in later on Monday out ahead of another storm system that will move through Monday night. That system will swing another cold front through the region Monday night, ushering in a second, even colder, blast of arctic air for Tuesday and Wednesday. Temperatures Tuesday night will be near zero degrees, with some locations likely falling below that.

The heart of the arctic air will remain just to the north and west of the region this week, but a few areas, especially in Jo Daviess, Stephenson, Green, and Carroll Counties, subzero temperatures are a good possibility. A third, but weak, system may move in on Wednesday. This could deliver a few light snow showers or flurries. What this system will not do is draw another shot of arctic air into the region. Rather, temperatures may moderate into the 20's to finish the week out. The disclaimer here is the two main forecast models we use to forecast longer than four days into the future disagree significantly on temperatures for the end of the week.

One model suggests the arctic air to remain intact through next weekend. Meanwhile, the other model is showing temperatures moderating into the 20's by the end of the week. The 20's for high temperatures appears like the best solution as of now based off of the upper-level pattern. Nonetheless, it will be a very cold week with several mornings seeing temperatures in the single digits, so if you haven't yet, it's time to crank the heat!