Bitter cold, limited snow chances linger into week's end

For once, no cold weather alerts to discuss. However, a clipper system passing to our north will help slide a cold front through this morning. 

This will make for a breezy but cold Tuesday with highs landing in the low teens. Winds will be out of the northwest, gusting up to 30 mph at times. This will likely leave wind chill values below zero not only this morning, but also for the afternoon. 

Overnight, skies will clear, allowing temperatures to drop to or briefly fall below zero. Wednesday into Thursday, forecast models show another strong area of high pressure system building across the Canadian Prairies and the Upper Great Plains. 

 

  

This will keep flow out of the north and northwest into the second half of the week, allowing this bitter cold to linger. Wind chill values for both Wednesday and Thursday morning may end up as low as -15. Similar to today, highs Wednesday will peak in the low teens, with temperatures getting closer to the 10° mark Thursday and Friday. 

  

This high-pressure system will also have a second job, keeping the more active storm track displaced to our south and east. For us, this means bitter cold and low snow chances will linger into the weekend. For those on the east coast, this may bring the potential for another coastal storm to brew. 

This would come a week after a potent winter storm brought much of the Mid-Atlantic and New England a foot to a foot and a half of snow. 

Winds increase ahead of quick clipper Monday night

 

Sun-filled skies Monday afternoon didn't do much to warm temperatures across northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin. Most stayed in the upper single digits and low teens, well below our average high of 29 degrees. Skies will remain clear through sunset as cloud cover slowly advances in from the northwest late this evening.

Initially, temperatures will drop this evening but as both cloud cover and southwest winds increase, temperatures will slowly start to rise through the night. Wind chills, unfortunately, will remain well below zero - ranging from -10 to -15 this evening and then -5 to -15 Tuesday morning. Not cold enough for any cold weather alerts - like Monday morning - but plenty cold so make sure you bundle up when heading out.

The increase in wind will likely also cause some blowing and drifting snow, especially in open and rural areas. Something to keep in mind if you're heading out later this evening, and then again Tuesday morning. A cold front will sweep across the Stateline during the morning, shifting winds to the northwest.

Northwest winds will gust around 30 mph during the morning. Temperatures won't rise much throughout the day, staying in the low teens with wind chills ranging from -5 to -10 during the afternoon. Skies will clear a bit Tuesday night which will bring temperatures back below zero and wind chills around -15 degrees Wednesday morning.  

Frigid Arctic air to stick around this week

High temperatures were stuck in the single digits over the weekend and now we are waking up to another frigidly cold morning across the area. 

The National Weather Service has a Cold Weather Advisory in place for all of northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin. This advisory will remain in place until noon as wind chill values during the first half of the day could be as low as -25°. That being said, layer up as frostbite could occur on any exposed skin within 30-35 minutes. 

Afternoon highs will remain in the single digits today, peaking around 8° under a partly cloudy sky. Sub-zero wind chills however, they aren't going anywhere as an organized wind will be present. 

Winds will be out of the northwest to start, then switching to the southwest by this afternoon with gusts upwards of 25 mph. This will allow wind chills values to remain below zero for the entirety of our Monday and Monday night.  

Unfortunately, this frigid cold will stick around for the entire work week as another potent cold front propels through the Stateline Tuesday. With this cold front may also be a chance for a passing flurry or snow shower, especially before mid-morning. From there, clouds and also an organized northwest wind will stay put, keeping afternoon highs in the low teens and wind chills in the single digits. 
 

Look for high temperatures to remain in the low teens Wednesday through Friday as a strong high pressure system takes hold of the central U.S. This will keep surface flow out of the northwest, allowing more Arctic and frigid air to spill southeastward into the western Great Lakes. Overnight lows for most nights will end up either around or below zero. 

Another bitterly cold night, cold weather advisory issued

 It is set to be another bitterly cold night across the Stateline, with temperatures dropping below zero and wind chills reaching between -20 and -25. Even a light breeze at 10-15 mph from the Northwest will cause the further drop in wind chills.

A COLD WEATHER ADVISORY will run from midnight tonight through noon Monday. While not nearly as dangerously cold as Friday morning was, frostbite can develop on exposed skin in under 30 minutes in these conditions. Be sure to bundle up as you head out in the morning!

While air temperatures will return back toward the upper single digits Monday afternoon, a light breeze will keep wind chills below zero through the afternoon. Afternoon high temperatures will range from 8-14 degrees through Friday, but afternoon wind chills may not get much higher than zero throughout the week.

Another burst of frigid air into Monday morning

 

Some good news this morning is that we're waking up to temperatures not in the negative's which is the first morning this has happened since Thursday! Cold air has sat strong over the Midwest for nearly 3 days now and doesn't look to leave quite yet. However today will be the one of the "warmer" days compared to the previous few as we'll see temperatures near double digits by this afternoon!

Some good news this morning is that we're waking up to temperatures not in the negative's which is the first morning this has happened since Thursday! Cold air has sat strong over the Midwest for nearly 3 days now and doesn't look to leave quite yet. However today will be the one of the "warmer" days compared to the previous few as we'll see temperatures near double digits by this afternoon!

Temperatures will gradually recover through the afternoon tomorrow thanks to winds shifting southwesterly which will promote an overall warming trend into Tuesday. Although we'll still be cold, we'll at least see temperatures back into the teens for both Tuesday and Wednesday when our next chances for snowfall will also arrive. 

Light snow showers Saturday evening, dusting possible through night

 It may not look like much, but some very light snow showers are making their way through the bitter arctic air and reaching the surface across Southern parts of the Stateline. Radar image below is current as of 5PM. Roughly South of a line from Savanna to Rockford to Woodstock, expect light snow showers. North of that line is dry for now.

You can also see the line of snow reaching the ground with the visibility map, with Rockford and areas Southeast seeing visibility near 7 miles or less. Any snow that falls will stick to the surface and cause slick roads given very cold surfaces.

Light snow will continue through the night before ending late Sunday morning. Steadiest bands of snow will remain South of Rockford. Most in the Stateline will not even see an inch of snow, but Southern fringes of the area closest to I-88 and toward Chicago suburbs may see an inch or two of very dry, powdery snow by Sunday afternoon.

Cold Weather Advisory Saturday morning, snow showers to follow

Although not as cold as yesterday, we're still expecting dangerous cold through the morning today lasting through the afternoon. Waking up this morning, Cold Weather Advisories remain in effect through midday as wind chill values will still be between -25° to -30° across the region. Thankfully our wind speeds today will remain weaker, however temperatures will still be below 0 most of the day.

Don't expect temperatures to reach back above 0° until after midday today as cloud cover through most of the morning will cause a slow rise in temperatures through the day. We can thank the cloud cover some though, if it wasn't for clouds we would most likely see our temperatures to start today even colder!

As we warm up through the afternoon today, a large low-pressure system will be tracking to our south producing snow, freezing rain, and mixed precipitation as far south as Texas today! Thanks to a high-pressure system nearby we won't see a ton of impacts from this system, but towards the late evening hours and into tomorrow morning a few snow showers will be possible. Higher accumulation totals from this system will remain well to our south, however areas south and east of Highway 20 near the I-88 corridor may see up to 2" in total snowfall.