Above Average Temperatures Remain Ahead of Late-Week Rain Chances

Overall, yesterday was a gorgeous day across the Stateline. Skies went from mostly sunny in the morning, to partly sunny by the afternoon as those fluffy fair-weather cumulus clouds began to fill the sky. Under southeasterly flow, highs across the area on Wednesday peaked in the upper 50s. A pretty seasonable day as far as early April standards are concerned. The good news is, the warm start we had to the month of April continues into today. 

Thursday brings the return of high temperatures hovering around 60° under a partly cloudy sky. This morning started off with mostly clear skies around the Stateline resulting in most locations falling into the mid to upper 30s. Despite the crisp start, we will hold onto the southeasterly surface flow which will continue to pull in warmer temperatures. This winds will also lead to a vast amount of moisture being transported into the Stateline, which you may notice in the form of increasingly cloud-covered skies. So, we'll see sunshine today, but there a good chance it's going to be filtering through some cloud cover.

A system out towards the west is going to be the main focus of the forecast for Friday and the first half of our weekend. Starting with this evening, model guidance was consistent on showing the possibility of seeing a passing shower after sunset. However, the better chances for a spotty shower or two remains for late tonight into early Friday morning. With that said, early risers tomorrow morning could wake up to a little light rain. Once those shower chances diminish,a good chunk of our Friday features mostly cloudy skies with highs climbing into the low 60s once again. If you have any late-day plans, you might want to have the rain gear on hand with you.

Rain chances arrive once again late Friday afternoon into Friday evening, ahead of an approaching cold front. Our system that is to the west this morning will lift into southern Canada by tomorrow evening, allowing a cold frontal boundary to advance eastward across the Midwest and Upper Midwest. This front should be halfway through Iowa by mid-day tomorrow, then arriving in our next of the woods by Saturday morning. Ahead of this front will be plenty of moisture leading to a good amount of shower activity by Friday night. Along with the rain chances, pockets of heavier rain are possible Model guidance suggests between a quarter and half an inch of rain is most likely for the Stateline once the last drop falls. Showers are still possible Saturday morning, but the afternoon features a much drier atmosphere. Good news is, an area of high pressure will move to the north of the region heading into Sunday, allowing for a dry end to the weekend.