Frigidly Cold Air Remains in Place, Snow Showers Possible This Afternoon

The Arctic wasn't too shy to make it's presence known over the weekend. In fact, Sunday was the coldest day in Rockford since our last Arctic outburst a little over two years ago in January 2019. For those that are tired of old man winter's games, I'm sorry to say that we aren't even close to be bring finished with this Arctic blast. We are also keeping an eye on a few chances for light snow throughout the work week. 

 

On the plus side, temperatures overnight didn't have the opportunity to bottom out to -11 like they did on Sunday morning. Temperatures walking out are 10° to 15° warmer, with all of us hovering on either side of the 0° mark. Although we're not as cold as Sunday morning, it's definitely cold enough to warrant a few extra layers before heading to your destination. With this Arctic air-mass in place, it's going to make it hard once again for temperatures to climb. 

Cloud cover remains stagnant as the jet stream will slide another weak disturbance into the area by early this afternoon. Hi-res models keeping much of the snow along and south of I-88. However, a few flurries cannot be ruled out late this afternoon stretching into the evening hours. Due to the fact that temperatures have remained well-below average since a strong Arctic front passed through late last week, a few slick spots may be possible. As far as afternoon highs, we'll slowly climb further up the thermometer, with most spots falling short of the 10° mark. Just to put how cold that is into perspective, our average high for early February is low 30s. Yeah, frigidly cold. 

As this disturbance pulls away from the area, it will take some of today's clouds with it. Guidance shows cloud cover decreasing after midnight, which will lead to another dangerously cold morning. Lows are likely to fall below zero, with wind chills back in the -10° to -20° range. Frostbit in these conditions could occur in less than 30 minutes. So please be sure to cover as much exposed skin as possible to keep yourself safe from getting frostbite. Cloud cover Tuesday night into Wednesday will lead to a slow cool down in temperatures into the middle of the work week. Wind chills however still well below zero as winds remain light out of the northeast.