Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Chicago, IL
Issued by NWS Chicago, IL
Versions:
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
611 FXUS63 KLOT 031731 AFDLOT Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Chicago/Romeoville, IL 1231 PM CDT Fri May 3 2024 .KEY MESSAGES... - Increasing chances of showers and thunderstorms capable of producing gusty winds Saturday afternoon and evening. - Periodic shower and thunderstorm chances next week, with some potential for strong to severe storms Tuesday. && .DISCUSSION... Issued at 335 AM CDT Fri May 3 2024 Through Saturday: Ongoing convective activity across portions of northern Illinois and northwest Indiana continues to wane early this morning as remaining instability and associated mid-level lapse rates decrease. In fact, as of 3am CT, very little lightning has been observed in the forecast area over the past hour. While a few lightning strikes are still possible through sunrise, a departing mid-level wave will limit remaining deeper-layer support. Meanwhile, a cold front roughly parallel to the Mississippi River will continue to shift a band of shallow showers across the area into mid-morning. High pressure will quickly settle across the western Great Lakes through tonight. The combination of a rather dry airmass evident by upstream dew points generally in the 30s along with fairly clear skies today should allow seasonably warm conditions in the 60s along the shore and lower 70s inland today. Today`s cold front will stall across the south half of Illinois, allowing for a return of low-level moisture behind the surface high on Saturday. A small mid-level wave lifting northeast across the far Upper Mississippi River Valley Saturday morning may brush the northwest CWA. Return of sufficient moisture by this point remains in question, though an isolated storm cannot be ruled out for areas west of I-39 late morning into early afternoon. A disjointed trough passage into the western Great Lakes later Saturday and into Saturday night should better align with increasing shallow moisture to produce scattered showers and storms as far east as around I-57 by sunset. However, fairly shallow low-level moisture return and a deep reservoir of dry mid-level air may limit storm coverage but also support gusty winds with any convection. Kluber Saturday Night through Thursday: Showers and thunderstorms should be ongoing along and ahead of a cold front Saturday evening. Some of these storms could be strong to severe early in the evening, with mainly localized gusty winds, though this threat should diminish with eastward extent due to diurnal loss of low-level instability and generally weak deep-layer shear. Sunday through Sunday night looks to be largely dry and cooler, as Saturday night`s cold front settles toward the Ohio Valley and surface high pressure builds east across the upper Midwest and western Great Lakes region. Temperatures will be limited to the lower 70s well inland Sunday afternoon, while northeast winds off of Lake Michigan will keep highs only in the upper 50s near the lake. Lows will dip into the mid-upper 40s in most spots Sunday night. Ensemble guidance depicts deep upper level trough developing across the western and central CONUS heading into next week, with a closed upper low developing across the Northern Plains Monday. A series of mid-level short waves are progged to rotate around the south and southeast periphery of the circulation as it slowly drifts east, eventually lifting the front across the lower Ohio Valley northward as a warm front later Monday night into Tuesday. Some spotty elevated showers are possible as early as Monday afternoon and evening as warm/moist advection develops atop the warm frontal slope, though really becomes more focused into the local area Tuesday into Tuesday night. This appears to be the period with the greatest potential for thunderstorms, some potentially strong to severe given strong mid-level wind fields and warm/moist/conditionally unstable low levels. Temperatures looks to surge back into the upper 70s/around 80 Tuesday afternoon, with surface dew points rising into the 60s as the warm front lifts across the area. Periodic shower and thunderstorm chances linger through the mid-week period, as ensembles continue to indicate the upper trough drifting east across the upper Midwest/Great Lakes region through the end of the forecast period. Blended NBM guidance maintains chance pops both Wednesday and Thursday, especially during the more diurnally-favored afternoon/evening hours. Higher low-level Theta-E air mass gradually gets shunted east of the area during this time, with temperatures gradually settling into the lower 70s by Thursday. Ratzer && .AVIATION /18Z TAFS THROUGH 00Z SUNDAY/... Issued at 1231 PM CDT Fri May 3 2024 - There is no impactful weather expected through the current forecast period Lingering MVFR cigs over Northwest Indiana are slowly eroding away as a cold front exits the area through the afternoon. Northeast winds around 10 knots are expected through the day, gradually rotating to the southeast by Saturday morning and diminishing slightly. Guidance is suggesting a fairly low level inversion developing Saturday morning. With enough flow above 1000 feet, it should result in a FEW low to mid level clouds developing; however, some areas in Northwest Indiana might have moments of lower vis around 4 SM, but dense fog is not expected. By Saturday afternoon, winds will become southwesterly ahead of the next passing cold front. Rain showers are expected to accompany this front, but not arriving until after the current forecast period for any of the TAF sites. DK && .LOT WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... IL...None. IN...None. LM...None. && $$ Visit us at weather.gov/chicago