One last day in the 50s ahead of weekend cool down

We're only 8 days into February and history has been made not once, not twice, but three times. 

Sun-filled skies and a warm southerly wind allowed temperatures soared into the upper 50s and in some spots low 60s Thursday afternoon. 

Officially, Rockford  peaked at 59°, breaking the previous record high of 58° from 1990. Fortunately, we get to enjoy one more day in the 50s before temperatures cool for the weekend.

Despite the passage of a cold front, winds today will remain out of the west and southwest. This, along with additional sunshine will help temperatures climb to near-record levels this afternoon.

Today features a high of 51°, which lands 3° shy of our record high from 1925. Clouds increase into Friday night as a weak disturbance slides into central Illinois. With tonight's cloud cover does come a slim chance for a mixed shower. That chance should come to a close well before daybreak.

Winds shift to the northwest Saturday, restricting high temperatures to the upper 30s. The same can be expected for Sunday. Now, even though this is much cooler than yesterday's upper 50s, upper 30s is still considered above-average.