A small break from the humidity, but it returns this weekend

A couple weak fronts sliding through Wisconsin and Illinois the past few days has slowly, and I mean slowly, lowered the humidity.  However, we're not going to completely get rid of it and as we look towards the weekend, it will only increase.

Thunderstorms today will be most likely in Wisconsin closer tied to an area of low pressure, but with the heating of the day and northern Illinois being in close proximity to the low, I'm going to hold on to a higher threat for storms later this morning and early afternoon.  Severe weather isn't expected, but heavier rain along with hail and stronger wind gusts are possible with any storms that do form.

Once the sun begins to set this evening, the storm threat will decrease.  Isolated storms will continue through the weekend as the jet stream pattern begins to shift a bit.  As we head closer to the weekend, it looks like we'll develop more of a southwest to northeast flow within the jet stream.  This means big thunderstorms are going to be possible across the far northern Plains and upper Midwest Saturday and Sunday.  Isolated thunderstorms continue for southern Wisconsin and northern Illinois for the weekend, but if we see many dry hours - especially on Saturday - temperatures will have a good chance of reaching near 90 degrees!  It does look to be an active start to next week, but the pattern begins to break down after we get past Tuesday.  Hopefully a drier pattern will hold through the 4th of July.

Weather 101: What Is An Omega Block?

If you've seen the forecast, you've noticed we have a lot of little storm chances the next several days, but why is that? One thing we can blame is the overall weather pattern and the formation of an Omega Block over the coming days.

So what the heck is an Omega Block? The simple answer is it's an area of high pressure that's stuck between two areas of low pressure. This causes the jet stream to kink, making it look like the Greek letter Omega (thus the name). This pattern can stick around for several days and can make the forecast very repetitive.

Typically, areas near the high pressure will see a prolonged span of dry weather, while areas closer to the lows see increased rain chances. The Stateline will be conveniently stuck in the middle, but we'll trend more towards the rainy weather as this pattern slowly shifts east. That's why we will see plenty of rain chances this week, just not necessarily good rain chances. -BA

Lightning Safety Awareness Week

The week of June 22-28 is Lightning Safety Awareness Week. On average, lightning kills about 51 people a year, but injures hundreds more. Here are a few tips to stay safe during the peak season for one of Mother Nature's more deadly phenomena.

Lightning Strike in DeKalb Co. Taken By Matt Rodewald

GET INSIDE: You've probably heard the phrase, "When thunder roars, go indoors". That's because if you can see lightning or hear thunder, you have the potential of being struck.

OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES: If you have outdoor plans and see lightning or hear thunder, the best advice is to wait 30 minutes after the last rumble of thunder before going back outside. The majority of people who are killed by lightning each year are doing leisure activities, like fishing or boating.

STUCK OUTSIDE: Some of you might be wondering, "What do I do if there's lightning and I can't get inside?" There's no good answer for this, but here are some tips:

-Avoid elevated places
-Get away from isolated trees and bodies of water
-Stay away from things that conduct electricity, like power lines and fences

So far in 2014, seven people have died from lightning strikes. If you look at what those people were during when they were killed (Fishing, riding their motorcycle, etc.), you realize that most of those deaths could have been prevented.

For more information about Lightning Safety Awareness Week from the National Weather Service, click here. -BA

Sunday weather update

A Severe Thunderstorm Watch has been issued for Jo Daviess, Carroll and Whiteside counties until 7pm Sunday evening.  Overnight thunderstorms in Iowa have strengthened a bit along the leading edge in eastern Iowa and will continue to track east through the afternoon.  Hail and strong wind gusts will likely be the primary threats.  If that line holds together, it looks like the storms would be crossing the Mississippi River within the next the couple of hours.

Saturday Severe Weather Update

1:35pm Update: A Severe T-Storm Watch is in effect for Carroll, Whiteside, Stephenson, Winnebago, Ogle, Lee, Boone, DeKalb, and McHenry until 9:00pm.

1:00pm Update: The Storm Prediction Center says we have a 60% chance of seeing a severe weather watch this afternoon. Stay alert today as storms will be scattered in nature. If we do see severe weather, strong winds and hail will be the main threats. There is no tornado threat at this time.

Radar as of 1:00pm Saturday

Full discussion from the Storm Prediction Center: http://1.usa.gov/1yx0Mpl

Storm photos from Thursday

Here are a few of the storm pictures we received from Thursday's thunderstorms.

Today is looking a little more quiet.  Humid, but just an outside chance of an isolated storm later this afternoon.

Rainfall totals from Wednesday Night; More rain on the way

Once again, thunderstorms producing heavy rainfall are expected to move through Thursday evening and night.  This coming just 24 hours after some recorded nearly four to five inches of rain last night.

Here's a look at some of the 24 hour rainfall totals from our reporting stations in Illinois and Wisconsin.  Now keep in mind these totals are at our weather stations, and many locations between those observing stations received much more.

Here's a list of some other places that reported totals this morning:

Lanark: 5.79"
2SW Dixon: 5.14"
Rock Falls: 5.01"
Dixon: 4.97"
Amboy: 3.72"
DeKalb: 2.81"
Galena: 2.48"
Byron: 2.46"
Ashton: 2.18"
Rochelle: 1.97"
Polo: 1.96"
Genoa: 1.35"
Rockford: 1.25"
Roscoe: 1.08"
Machesney Park: 0.98"
Capron: 0.70"

A warm front south of the Stateline today was the focus for those thunderstorms Wednesday evening.  Warm, moist air continued to run into the front and with very little air movement within the atmosphere, storms were able to build over the same locations for several hours producing those high rainfall totals. 

Looking ahead into tonight, we could have almost the same scenario.  The warm front will pull back north this evening and tonight as an upper level disturbance moves in from the southwest.  Thunderstorms have been building out west through the majority of the morning, but there hasn't been much progress to the east.  That will change tonight with a slow moving cold front.  Severe weather this afternoon looks to remain centered out west but heavy rain, with possibly more flooding, will be an issue for us tonight as the amount of moisture we have in the atmosphere remains high.  Additional rainfall totals could add up to another one to two inches, with locally higher amounts.