Dry, & Warm Weather Pattern Caps Off a Very Dry September

Very Dry September:

Just as quick as we were to jump into the month of September, we are sitting a few days away from jumping into October. Can you believe it? However to our surprise, September has featured no relief in the form of significant rainfall to help with the very dry year we are having. 

Hence why a good chunk of northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin remain under a D2 moderate drought. As of this morning, the 0.53" of rain that the Rockford International Airport has seen this month ranks 9th for driest Septembers on record. With the way the weather pattern is looking as we jump into October, it doesn't look like that total ain't going to budge much. 

Sun-Filled Stretch:

No need for a light jacket if you are planning to leave the house early today. Temperatures, thanks to a light southerly wind, are kicking off on a comfortably warm note in the low to mid 60s. With high pressure mainly in control of our atmosphere, today features plenty of sunshine with highs back in the low to mid 80s. Normally in late-September, our average highs are falling into the low 70s.

A cold front coming in late in the day may bring a few more clouds and a light breeze to the area during the evening hours. However, with no moisture to work with, this cold front will sneak through our area bone-dry. 

What we do see though is a slightly cooler air-mass filter in from the north, resulting in a small drop in our overnight lows and daily highs for Tuesday. It'll be a "light jacket" type morning as most of our spots will wake up in the low 50s. With an easterly component to our surface winds, highs will top out in the low 80s under plenty of sunshine. 80s look to be the name of the game for the rest of the work week, with a slight cool-down expected for the upcoming weekend. One thing that continues to avoid the Stateline is rain chances.

Dry Moving Forward:
 
Models have been consistent over the past few days on a strong ridge of high pressure sliding in early Wednesday, remaining in control through Thursday. This will help steer any systems away from the Stateline, keeping rain chances very low as we prepare to jump into October. 

So it looks more than likely that this September will be written down as one of the top 10 driest on record. There are hints of a slow-moving low pressure system coming in at the end of the work week and for the start of the weekend, possibly bringing us a very slim chance for a few isolated showers and thunderstorms. But these chances by no means come in the form of a washout.