Pleasant weather lingers, hotter times ahead

Believe it or not, cooler days have heavily outweighed the warmer days since we made the switch from June to July. 

In fact, Thursday's high of 76° was the sixth day in a row where temperatures at the Rockford Airport registered below average. But changes are on the horizon as we return to a weather pattern in which we haven't seen since the beginning of August. One that may bring the Stateline a 90° day or two.

Friday starts off cool, with some spots once again landing in the low 50s. Mixed sun and a light warm wind out of the south will help temperatures climb closer to seasonable. Expect highs in the upper 70s, close to the 80° mark. Conditions remain dry and partly cloudy overnight, with lows ending up around late-August standards (low 60s). 

 

By Saturday, the upper-level heat dome that will be behind the significant jump in temperatures will be sitting over the central plains. Ahead of it, a warmer and more humid will spill into the western Great Lakes, bringing highs into the upper 80s. Dew points will be in the upper 60s, so expect the air to feel a bit more humid as the day progresses. 

On top of the ridge, forecast models show a few disturbances sliding into Illinois Saturday night into early Sunday. This may bring a round of scattered showers and storms to the region, with chances lasting into mid-morning Sunday. At this moment in time, severe weather does not look to be a concern. Once rain chances come to a close, clouds will give way to some sunshine by the time the afternoon arrives. This will allow temperatures to climb into upper 80s. Humidity levels will be climbing as well, producing heat indices in the low 90s.

Isolated storm chances will remain in place into early next week, though most of this time will remain dry, thanks to the mid-levels remaining capped. The best chance comes with a passing cold front which models bring in sometime Tuesday. The bigger headline as we've discussed on multiple occasions this week is going to be the potential for 90° weather ahead of this cold front. Both Monday and Tuesday feature highs in the low 90s. When you factor in the humidity, heat indices could approach the 100° mark.