Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Central Illinois
Issued by NWS Central Illinois
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717 FXUS63 KILX 101740 AFDILX Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Lincoln IL 1240 PM CDT Thu Sep 10 2026 .KEY MESSAGES... - Scattered rain showers across central and southeast Illinois will diminish late this afternoon. - Unseasonably warm conditions return Saturday through Tuesday, sending afternoon temperatures into the upper 80s and lower 90s. && .DISCUSSION... Issued at 1240 PM CDT Thu Sep 10 2026 A shortwave trough and associated frontal boundary currently traversing the area has brought widespread rain showers to central and southeast Illinois through midday. Synoptic scale ascent has weakened over the past few hours and this trend is expected to continue, causing the showers to scatter out and eventually diminish by early evening over southeast IL. Sinking motion and surface high pressure building across the Great Lakes will promote clearing skies tonight and Friday morning. High temperatures on Friday rebound into the lower to mid 80s as broad southeasterly flow resumes. Two low chances of rain develop for late Friday through Sunday. The first is associated with a weak upper wave passing to our south, which could spread scattered showers as far north as southeast to east central IL Friday afternoon and Friday night. Separately, a frontal boundary over the upper Midwest makes some progress southeast on Saturday night into Sunday, and this brings low chance PoPs into the western CWA. High confidence resides in a substantial warming trend Saturday through Tuesday (Sep 12-15). An upper-level ridge amplifies across the central to eastern CONUS, supported by strong agreement between deterministic and ensemble mean guidance. NBM blended guidance projects daily high temperatures climbing into the upper 80s to lower 90s through this period. The ECMWF Extreme Forecast Index (EFI) highlights maximum temperature values ranging from 0.70 to 0.85 across central Illinois, indicating climatologically unusual warmth for mid- September. Guidance supports dew points generally in the 60s though this stretch, which would keep daily peak heat indices below 100 degrees. The next chance for appreciable rain holds off until some point next week when the next cold front moves into the Midwest. The guidance envelope shows a large spread in timing, which is expected as the system is moving into a strong ridge. As a result, NBM`s chance to likely PoPs stretch through Mon-Thu. ML/AI severe outlook produce show a low (5%) risk area centered around Tuesday. && .AVIATION /18Z TAFS THROUGH 18Z FRIDAY/... Issued at 1240 PM CDT Thu Sep 10 2026 SHRA and variable ceilings associated were associated with a frontal boundary stretched across central IL at midday. -SHRA will diminish this afternoon along with improving ceilings. Due to the moist ground and light winds, another round of reduced ceilings and visibilities is likely late tonight, at least for parts of the area late tonight. Current guidance shows IFR conditions most likely at KSPI with lower probabilities of reduced categories for terminals farther northeast. && .ILX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... None. && $$ KEY MESSAGES...25 DISCUSSION...25 AVIATION...25