Another 70° day likely ahead of our next active pattern

Plenty of sun and a rather robust southwesterly wind left much of the Stateline in the 70s Monday. 

For Rockford, this was the 5th time since the year began where highs have come in at or above the 70° mark. Guess what? That's 5 more 70° days than what we had at this point last year.

Officially, the Rockford Airport peaked at 71°, tying the record high set in 1990. While record warmth will be out of our reach today, we can expect to add another 70° day to the tally. 

A warm southwesterly breeze lingered overnight, leaving us in the upper 40s and low 50s. This warmer start is going to lead to another unseasonably warm afternoon with highs in the low 70s. 

Our forecast high of 73° is a handful of degrees away from our record high of 78° set in 1990. In a similar fashion to Monday, winds become windy, gusting up to 30 mph during the afternoon.  All remains dry ahead of a weak disturbance that may bring the area a shower or two overnight. Overall, the best chance is for any rainfall will be to the south of I-88. 

Sliding in behind tonight's disturbance is a ridge of high pressure which will keep things under control for the middle of the work week. 

Although we're not expecting a third 70° day, highs will still manage to climb into the upper 60s under a mix of clouds and sunshine. It's also during this time where a backdoor cold front to our south will turn into a warm front. The position of this warm front will determine two things, 1. how warm we get on Thursday. And 2. Thursday's storm chances. 

Earlier this morning, the Storm Prediction Center placed areas to the south and west of Rockford under a level 2 of 5 Slight Risk. The rest of the region is under a level 1 Marginal Risk. 

Again, this would be for the late afternoon and evening hours on Thursday. If everything were to come together, all severe hazards would be on the table. For now, it will be important to keep an eye on forecast as Thursday approaches.