Snow showers Saturday followed by bitter cold

 

With another day of measurable snowfall yesterday, February has already been much more active than both December and January and we're only halfway through the month! After yesterday's 2+ inch snowfall event for many, that has now already put us above our average snowfall for halfway through February. Comparing this to the season though we are still well below average and if we want anything close to our yearly normal, we will need a big event!

Today however, multiple rounds of snow showers will make their way through the state line and may be enough to add another inch of snow to our already impressive totals. Some areas may even receive more as well, as portions of northwest Illinois and Southern Wisconsin are under a Winter Weather Advisory outlining the possibility of another 1 to 3 inches falling again today. Areas to the south and east will have a little drier air and less forcing for snow showers, but still some locations may be able to still reach an inch throughout the region.

Snow showers look to begin anywhere between 9-10 a.m. this afternoon with areas to the north and west once again seeing the brunt of it. But as we go into the afternoon, we'll start to gradually see some of these snow showers increase and spread across the state line. Although snowfall may be lighter today, caution on roadways will still be needed as any snowfall can make roadways slick.

By the evening tonight though, snow showers will start to become more isolated as drier air from the northwest begins to push in. At this time areas to our south and east will see the highest chances for snowfall, but a few isolated showers still cannot be ruled out. With the arrival of drier air though, we'll start to feel cooler and much breezier conditions into the night.

Wind gusts near 30 mph will begin later tonight around 12 a.m. and will continue into tomorrow as colder air arrives. With this cold air some snow showers on the backside of today's low-pressure system may develop as well but accumulation totals tomorrow remain low. Tomorrow though will be the last day in double digit temperatures as skies clearing through the night will allow us to get very cold.

Starting tomorrow night, strong cold air advection will push an artic airmass down into the Plains and Midwest bringing single digit and subzero temperatures to many. Combined with our recent snowfall this will only help temperatures drop even more. Starting Monday temperatures don't look to get back into double digits until at least Thursday with nighttime negative temperatures nearly every night. High pressure will keep us calm though, but with high pressure partly cloudy skies often make conditions even colder so make sure to layer up this week!