Winter Weather Advisory issued for parts of the Stateline; Some impacts to the commute Wednesday morning

 
A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY has been issued for Lee and DeKalb counties beginning at 8pm Tuesday and lasting through 6pm Wednesday.

Winter Storm Warnings expand across many states stretching from the Plains, all the way up to Michigan and Ohio as a major winter storm moves across the middle of the country.

Temperatures Tuesday afternoon warmed into the low 40s ahead of a cold front, reaching 43 degrees in Rockford.  Now that the cold front has passed, temperatures have been falling into the 20s from the northwest.  Rain showers developed ahead of the cold front, but mostly for locations southeast of the immediate area.  On the backside of the light rain, light snow developed but as drier air began to undercut the moisture above there wasn't much of that snow actually reaching the ground just yet.

It's that dry air that will play a role in the sharp snowfall cut-off from south to north by Wednesday afternoon.  Areas under the Winter Storm Warning are set to receive over half a foot of snow, with some locations possibly receiving near a foot of snow!  For the counties under the Winter Weather Advisory the snow will be much less, but still impactful through the morning commute.

As the atmosphere continues to saturate through Tuesday evening we should begin to see some light

snow move in along, and south, of I-88 impacting parts of southern Whiteside, Lee and DeKalb counties between 7pm and 10pm.  The snow will remain confined to locations southeast of Rockford but should begin lifting north Wednesday morning, reaching the state line around sunrise.  The northern edge of the snow will remain light as a steadier snow falls a little further to the south.

Only a dusting up to an inch is possible in areas

along Highway 20 from near Freeport to Belvidere, while locations in southern Wisconsin and over northwest Illinois may not see any snow at all.  The further south you head from Rockford there will likely be some minor snow accumulations.  Areas that stand to receive at least a few inches of snow are most likely in Lee and DeKalb counties where the advisory will go into effect.  Some issues with the morning commute Wednesday are to be expected, regardless of how much snow comes down.  Even though the higher snow amounts will occur further south, with temperatures in the teens the light snow will make it slick in some locations.  It may be a good idea to plan for that during the morning commute.  By Wednesday evening our skies should be mostly dry.