Saturday, September 21, 2024

Widespread beneficial rainfall through Sunday afternoon

 Most of the thunderstorm activity Saturday evening has fizzled out upon reaching Northern Illinois, because of the lack of sufficient moisture that provided an unfavorable environment for the storms to maintain their strength. In the short term, we may see a few lingering showers and storms from that bunch through midnight or so, but there looks to be a break in the activity much of the night until closer to daybreak Sunday morning. Temperatures will not fall far due to the cloud cover in place, overnight lows only drop to the mid 60s.

The next wave of shower and storm activity rolls in early Sunday morning and may stick around through the afternoon. Within this wave, widespread showers and a few embedded thunderstorms will be possible, providing pockets of steady rain. It will likely not rain the entire day but should rain more often than not for most. The main rain shield pivots out of the region by the evening as drier air takes its place again in the short term.

All told, most in the Stateline should see some beneficial rainfall, though not nearly enough to counter our drought conditions that have been developing amid a very dry month so far. Total rainfall amounts will likely range between 0.25"-0.75" for most, aside from higher amounts within thunderstorms.

This weather system will also filter in much cooler air behind it, as high temperatures Sunday will may more than 20° cooler than Saturday's highs in the 90s. The first day of astronomical fall will certainly feel like it, much closer to the average high for this time of year. A few spotty showers may be possible Monday and Tuesday, but most will remain dry through at least mid-week as temperatures slowly begin to climb again through the mid-70s by the end of the week.

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