The Chicago area is poised for quite the roller coaster of conditions in coming days, as light snow and lake-effect snow is expected as the weekend nears, with a rapid warmup expected just as quickly.
For starters, a system will start pushing toward the Chicago area on Friday, slowly descending to the south and dropping temperatures from the mid-40s down into the 30s.
Some precipitation is also expected as part of that system, with snow expected in areas near the Wisconsin-Illinois state line and mixed precipitation and rain expected south of Chicago in the afternoon.
As the day moves along and as temperatures drop, snow could descend further to the south, though there isn’t a strong likelihood of noticeable accumulations at this time.
What remains a bit more uncertain is how much impact a lake-effect band of snow could have on the area. That band is expected to develop on the backside of the front, impacting areas near Lake Michigan’s western shore and then funneling south along the border between Illinois and Indiana.
Regardless of impact, the big story Saturday will be the chillier conditions, with highs expected in the 30s across the area.
That change is going to be extremely short-lived, as temperatures are likely going to rebound back into the mid-50s across the area by Sunday afternoon.
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In fact, that will be just the beginning of the warm-up. Temperatures Monday are expected to climb into the 60s, and could even threaten records in the city of Chicago, where the record for Feb. 26 stands at 64 degrees, according to the National Weather Service.
Tuesday will be even warmer, with readings in the mid-to-upper 60s, but there is also a chance for rain that could enter the forecast. That rain will stick around through Wednesday, with some mixed precipitation possible as another front moves through the area.
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The warm-up following that front won’t be quite as quick to arrive, though temperatures are expected to be in the mid-to-upper 40s after things clear up.
Stay tuned to the NBC 5 Storm Team for updates, and be sure to download the NBC Chicago app for all the latest weather news and alerts.
