Let It Snow....Let It Snow

A high pressure system up north will continue filtering cold air into our area and clear the skies for the overnight, which is why we will be seeing colder temperatures for our overnight.  We will dip down into the low teens for our overnight temperatures, before moving into the mid 30°s for tomorrow afternoon.  A low pressure system out west is strengthening and will be moving to our area tomorrow evening.  It'll bring a warm front through our area, which will start the snow showers between 6 and 7pm.  The snow will stick with us until Monday night, where we are expecting a total accumulation of 3-5."  We get a short break from the snow before it returns on Thursday and Friday.  The accumulation combined for both of these days will be between 1-1.5," much smaller than what we're looking to get Sunday evening to Monday night.  Along with getting two shots of snow next week, we'll have temperatures in the 20°s and 30°s.  Winter weather is looking to make quite a comeback!

Winter Weather Comeback

It barely made it into the 30°s today as a high pressure system to the north has been pulling cold air into our area.  The high will continue to this as we move into the weekend before a low moves in on Sunday.  The low will bring a warm front through our area Sunday evening, leading to snow showers that will stick with us until late Monday night.  We are looking to get a total of between 2-3 inches of snow from Sunday evening to late Monday night.  The reason we are seeing this wintry weather is due to the strong high pressure system to our north.  This high is pushing the jet stream down south, and whenever the jet stream is south of a given location, that location sees colder temperatures.  We are only expecting snow from Sunday evening to late Monday night and we'll stay in the 20°s and 30°s afterwards, until temperatures slightly warm up to the low 40°s for St. Patrick's Day.  Looks like a little bit of good luck is in store of us at the end of next week!

Daylight Saving Time Begins

Well if you head outside it's going to feel like the middle of winter, but this weekend we take another step towards Spring with Daylight Saving Time beginning this weekend. Officially at 2am on Sunday, but it's always a good idea to set your clocks AHEAD one hour before you head to bed Saturday night.

The sun will be rising a little later in the morning (for now), but at least we get an extra hour of daylight! The sun will rise on Sunday at 7:12am and the sun will set at 6:59pm, compared to Saturday when the sun will rise at 6:15am and will set at 5:59pm.
Also remember to change the batteries on your smoke detectors and on your weather radios!

Winter Returns this Weekend

Enjoy one more day with temperatures near average, cold air arrives tonight into Friday. Incoming high pressure late tonight will help to clear skies but it also brings a shot of colder air along with it. An upper level trough digs across the Great Lakes, and this will allow colder Canadian air into the Midwest and east.

The upper level pattern will also support a more active set up beginning this weekend. Light snow this morning is currently passing through southern Wisconsin with a mid-level
wave, but we are watching a few systems that have the potential for more accumulating snow.

The first arrives Friday night into Saturday, but the path of the low has shifted taking the strongest lift into southwest Iowa. This will take accumulating snow south and west of the Stateline, with just a dusting near the Quad Cities. The cloud cover will stick around this weekend, before our next chance for snow arrives Sunday night into Monday. Right now models are showing this low pressure track shifting more to the north and east compared to Friday's system. This will support more of a threat for accumulating snow to start next week. It is too soon to say what we will see in terms of snowfall, but we will keep you posted as we get closer.

Along with the scattered snow showers, we can expect high temperatures the next several days stuck about 10 degrees below average. 

Peak wind gusts Wednesday afternoon

Strong winds Wednesday caused a bit of damage throughout the Stateline with many residents losing power due to downed trees or power lines.  It's been a busy few days for the electrical companies following Monday night's storms.

A deepening area of low pressure northeast of the Great Lakes is responsible for the strong winds, with peak wind gusts reaching near 60 mph in a few spots.  Most wind gusts locally were between 45mph and 55mph.

The winds have calmed greatly Wednesday evening with wind speeds expected to be around 5 to 10 mph into Thursday morning.

Winds do increase Friday, but temperatures will only reach the upper 20's.  This will make it feel more like the teens during the afternoon.

Widespread Storm Reports From Last Night

What a night last night!  Warm temperatures and overcast skies preceded an onslaught of severe weather that moved into the Stateline area just before midnight.  This well-predicted system arrived with a very strong and well-defined line of storms that thankfully were short lived.  Before the storms moved-on, however, they did some damage as indicated by the attached chart which represents all the storm reports over the past 24 hours.  For the most part the storms were a wind event, but in some areas, such as Sycamore, spotters identified 1" hail.  There were tornado warnings in the Quad Cities area and wind damage and downed trees throughout the Stateline.  We are used to this kind of spring weather but it has arrived early this year!  

More tranquil conditions will return to the Stateline as we progress further toward the weekend, but temperatures will be dropping and we may see snow or a mix of rain and snow on Saturday and next Monday.  After enjoying spring-like weather for a few days, its back to winter!

Winds of Change for the Next Couple Days

Wind Advisories up for southern Wisconsin and northwest Illinois through 6pm tonight with strong gusty winds through the afternoon and early evening.

Surface winds have turned to the west behind a departing cold front, with the front's low passing into the northern Great Lakes. High pressure is anchored to the southeast, along the east coast and as the low pressure tightens to the north the pressure gradient tightens. This strong pressure gradient is what fuels the stronger winds.

Westerly winds will be sustained around 20-30mph but will gust as high as 45mph. You'll want to use caution while driving today, especially on north and south roads. High profile vehicles will have a difficult time today as well. If you're planning on driving north of Rockford on I-90 or south along I-39 you'll want to take into account those winds!


Those westerly winds will also cause issues for our western counties, a Red Flag Warning have been issued due to dangerous fire conditions. Relative humidity will drop as low as 25%. Burning is highly discouraged today, as any fire can quickly burn out of control. The Red Flag Warning will expire at 6pm tonight.