Tom Skilling tracking weekend snow in Chicago
A blustery cold front sweeps across the Chicago metro area Friday. It’s not the quantity of the snow this system’s gusty snow showers which is the issue. It’s the fact this front has had a history of producing brief heavy bursts of snow amid strong winds–and that it may do the same in parts of the Chicago metro area today.
Brief visibility reductions to fractions of a mile are possible in heavier snow showers. Wind gusts topping 40 mph could produce some brief travel challenges
A few of the heavier snow showers may produce quick, wind-blown 1/2″ to 1″ accumulations.
I’m posting hourly model snow forecasts and also maps which offer a snapshot of early morning visibilities and wind gusts to Chicago’s west in western Illinois, Iowa and southern Minnesota to show you what’s on the way for sections of the Chicago area with today’s cold frontal passage.
Cold Morning in Chicago
This blowing snow comes on the heel of the Chicago area’s coldest night in more than a month.
It’s been the coldest morning of January and the coldest morning across the chicago area since December 27th when the low temp dropped to +8-deg.
The overnight and morning chill followed the first below normal day thursday in nearly a month (since late December). Chicago had logged 29 consecutive above normal days until Thursday—quite a run in through what has historically been Chicago’s coldest month of the year.
Friday morning temps dropped to 13 at O’Hare and 14 at Midway.
Lows dropped to 13 and 14 at O’Hare and Midway respectively–but low temps bottomed out at 0 at Rochelle and 1-above at DeKalb with lows of 2 at McHenry, Shabbona and South Beloit.
More snow Saturday
More on a wintry weather system which is to bring accumulating snow to a swath of the Chicago metro area by Saturday afternoon and night is to come.
Source link
