First Shot of Arctic Air Filters In, Unseasonably Cold into Next Week

Yesterday's winter storm left behind a few inches of fresh snow across the Stateline. But with the snow now behind us, we turn our attention to gusty winds and the return of the extreme cold. Gusts behind an arctic cold front reached 40-45 mph overnight Thursday, resulting in near whiteout conditions at times. Thankfully, winds aren't that strong as we prepare to head out this morning, but the treat for blowing and drifting snow continues. For that, the National Weather Service has placed the entire region under a Winter Weather Advisory until the noon hour, as winds could still gust up to 30-35 mph into the early afternoon. This will likely cause issues on north and south roadways, especially in open areas. If you plan to be outdoors for a prolonged period of time, layer up because here comes the extreme cold.

Yesterday's arctic front set the stage for the coldest air of the season to filter into the region ahead of Super Bowl weekend. Remember the 30s? Yeah, those are a now a distant memory. The first shot of cold air plummeted temperatures into Friday morning, with most ending up in the single-digits. Those winds were not only the reason for blowing snow, but for wind chills to drop well below-zero. A trend that is likely going to stick around into Super Bowl weekend and well into next week. The afternoon should feature slight improvements, as gusty winds slowly begin to subside, especially by the evening commute. Highs won't budge much, climbing into the low-mid teens, which will hold the potential of a few slick spots across the Stateline. 

Moving forward into the upcoming weekend, Saturday and Sunday feature some of the coldest air of the season (so far). In fact, this will be the coldest air we've seen since the arctic outbreak of January 2019. Remember when Rockford hit an all-time low of -31°? Thankfully, we're not dealing with that kind of cold this weekend. But cold enough to where you're going to want to take extreme caution if you are going to be outdoors for a while. If you don't need to be out and about, stay inside and stay warm. Highs remain in the low teens Saturday, dropping into the single digits by Sunday afternoon. By Saturday night, winds are going to shift slightly more to the northwest. Wind chills are likely going to drop to between -20° and -25°, which is dangerously close to wind chill advisory levels. 

Along with the cold, there will be several chances to see snowflakes fly going into next week. The first being late this afternoon as an increase in cloud cover could spark up a couple of flurries. However, the best chance seems to arrive Saturday afternoon into Saturday evening, as hi-res models continue to show a round of light snow sliding in from the southwest. Most of the heavier snow with this weak disturbance seems to remain to our south, but minor accumulations can be expected.