Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Central Illinois
Issued by NWS Central Illinois
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960 FXUS63 KILX 271051 AFDILX Area Forecast Discussion...Updated Aviation National Weather Service Lincoln IL 451 AM CST Thu Nov 27 2025 .KEY MESSAGES... - Below normal temperatures are expected today and Friday, with highs in the 30s. Breezy winds will make it feel even cooler this morning, with wind chills in the teens. - There is a 70-90% chance of 5" of snow north of I-72 this weekend (40-70% to the south). A Winter Storm Watch will be in effect from 12am Saturday to 6am Sunday. Those with travel plans are urged to monitor forecast updates, and begin preparing for travel impacts on Saturday. - Highs early next week appear to be in the upper teens to low 30s, with lows potentially in the single digits to upper teens. Wind chills have a 30-60% chance of being below 0 degrees Monday morning, north of a Quincy to Paxton line. && .DISCUSSION... Issued at 251 AM CST Thu Nov 27 2025 Happy Thanksgiving, dedicated readers! High pressure is setting up over the plains today ahead of the next impactful system this weekend, giving us a beautiful (albeit chilly) holiday to be thankful for. If you have any outdoor festivities (turkey trots, parades, turkey frying, etc), you might like to bundle up. Temperatures will be only getting into the 30s in central IL or low 40s for southeastern IL today. Wind chills this morning will be in the teens. Otherwise, no precipitation is expected for today. Highs through Saturday will be in the upper 30s to low 40s. Lows through Saturday are in the upper teens to mid 20s. Ahead of the system Saturday, moisture transport will increase from the Gulf, feeding the precipitation overnight Friday and all day Saturday. WAA will also play a role in bumping up temperatures to near or just above freezing during the day Saturday. This will impact where and when the transition line will be in Illinois, which is the biggest uncertainty at this time. There has been a slight southern shift with the models over the previous day, pushing the higher snow amounts south. The system we are watching will begin travel over the CONUS today, and will begin to be better sampled by observational tools. This will result in a better understand and depiction by the models in the near future. The system looks like it will be entering eastern IL around 06z Saturday and exiting between 06-12z Sunday. A Winter Storm Watch has been issued tonight for the 06z Saturday to 12z Sunday period for counties along and north of I- 70. From 06z Sat to 06z Sun, probabilities for > 5 inches of snow show a 40-70% chance from I-70 to I-72 and a 70-90% north of I-72, based off the probabilistic NBM. North of a Galesburg to Bloomington line, there is a 30-60% chance of 12 inches of snow. At some point during the day Saturday, the precipitation will transition to a rain/snow mix somewhere in central or southeastern IL. This could affect the snowfall totals but could still be impactful with increased travel on the roads, especially if anything melts and refreezes. Those with travel plans this weekend are urged to check back for additional updates. The probability of wintry travel impacts is steadily increasing. Next week, more wintry precipitation is possible, along with bitterly cold temperatures and wind chills. Highs to start next week are forecast to be in the upper teens to low 30s, with lows potentially in the single digits (mainly north of I-72) to upper teens. Wind chills in the northwestern portion of the CWA have a 30- 60% chance of being below 0 degrees Monday morning, based off the LREF. Copple && .AVIATION... (For the 12z TAFs through 12z Friday Morning) Issued at 451 AM CST Thu Nov 27 2025 MVFR ceilings will be around this morning, and will be tricky. It looks like the ceilings should lift to VFR by mid morning. However, they have been hovering at the threshold between VFR and MVFR so far, so they could bounce around some. Northwest winds will be gusty this morning up to 20 knots, but will ralax as the day goes on. Becoming less than 10 knots by this evening. Copple && .ILX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... Winter Storm Watch from late Friday night through late Saturday night for ILZ027>031-036>038-040>057-061>063-066. && $$