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The warmest February on record in Chicago is ending on a turbulent note, with record-high temperatures, a tornado outbreak and now frigid temperatures all coming within the span of 24 hours.
As the calendar flips to March, temperatures will quickly be rising back to spring-like levels as soon as this weekend, with sunny skies and highs in the upper 40s on Thursday beginning the warm-up.
The mercury is expected to cross 50 degrees on Friday, with the significant jump in temperatures occurring heading into Saturday, where highs are forecasted to be back in the low 60s.
The weekend is likely to end on an even warmer note, with temperatures approaching 70 degrees once again on a breezy day with partly cloudy skies.
Another cooldown will be ahead for the area at the start of next week however, similarly following a possible system of thunderstorms.
While 70-degree highs are in the forecast for Monday, gusty winds and scattered thunderstorms in the afternoon and evening could impact the Chicago area, with significantly lower temperatures on the back-end of that system.
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Though temperatures could drop to the mid 30s on Monday evening, the drop won't be quite as precipitous as the one the Chicago area witnessed in the overnight hours heading into Wednesday morning.
Following the Monday night, forecasted highs are in the 50s for much of next week, still well above the average highs for early March.
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Despite the cooldown, the National Weather Service's Climate Prediction Center has issued a 70-to-80% chance of above average temperatures from March 7-13 in the Upper Midwest, so the warmer temperatures may stick around for an extended time.
