Isaias strengthens, but a warm and dry weekend remains on track

Showers Friday:

It's been a beautiful stretch of weather across the area so far this week. Sunshine has been plentiful, and our temperatures have consistently climbed into the 70s, ranging from the low 70s early in the week to the upper 70s more recently. 

Combined with low humidity and dry conditions, it's made for a fantastic first full week of October. But as the saying goes, all good things must come to an end. Fortunately, our interruption from the sunshine will be brief as our weather pattern aims to dry back out for the upcoming weekend.  

Today's rain showers are tied to a weak disturbance and accompanying warm front lifting east across the Central Plains. Over the past 24 hours, this system has sparked several severe thunderstorm warnings and flash flood warnings across Iowa. As it continues its eastward trek, it will bring an opportunity for a few showers, possibly a rumble of thunder around or just after the midday hours. Amounts should be light for most locales, and once this system moves through, clouds will decrease into the night. 

Latest on Isaias:

Since our last update, Isaias has continued to gain strength as it spins over the central Gulf, reaching category 2 status with maximum sustained winds of 105 mph. At the same time, its central pressure has fallen to 972 millibars. Landfall remains expected sometime late Friday evening along the Gulf coast, possibly still as a category 2 hurricane.  

Weekend Outlook:

The core of Isaias is still expected to remain well to our southeast after landfall, keeping the heaviest rain and strongest winds away from northern Illinois. That said, we may see some of the system's influence in the form of high-level clouds late Saturday into Saturday night as tropical moisture spread north into the Great Lakes. Even with those clouds, a ridge of high pressure positioned to our north will help keep our weather dry and summer-like with afternoon highs landing in the upper 70s and low 80s. Saturday looks to be the warmest day of the stretch with highs topping out around 81 degrees. This warmth aims to linger into the start of next week.