Staying unseasonably mild ahead of our next storm system

Plenty of sunshine, along with the influence of gusty southwesterly wind, allowed spring-like temperatures to surge in for a second consecutive day.

Officially, Rockford peaked at 49°, which comes 20° above late-January standards. Temperatures stay mild for Wednesday, though won't be as warm as a cold front did come through overnight. 

Similar to Monday and Tuesday, a good mixture of clouds and sun is likely. Instead of winds being out of the southwest, we'll have a northwesterly breeze in place, which at times could gust up to 30 mph. This will bring temperatures down a few degrees, landing afternoon highs in the low 40s. Again, unseasonably mild. Skies remain quiet and partly cloudy overnight, with low temps falling into the upper 20s.

Ahead of our next system, winds swap back to the southwest for Thursday. This will allow afternoon highs to climb back towards the 50° mark. At the same time, clouds will increase as said storm system lifts northeastward out of the southern plains. Wet weather is soon to follow, with scattered rain showers sliding in Thursday evening. As colder air wraps in around the low's center, we could see snowflakes mix in during the first half of Friday.