With the weekend wrapping in Chicago, residents soaked up the sunshine and mild weather, but a shift is on the horizon. According to the National Weather Service, the city will experience mostly sunny skies today with highs hovering near 46 degrees and calm winds becoming east southeast in the afternoon. As dusk falls, the skies will partially cloud over with a low around 35, while southeast winds pick up, potentially gusting as high as 20 mph.
Moving into Monday, Chicagoans should brace for scattered snow showers primarily before 1 p.m. Despite the earlier blast of sunshine, temperatures are predicted to fall to about 35 degrees by morning. "Breezy, with a west wind 15 to 25 mph becoming north in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 30 mph," states the National Weather Service's report. In terms of precipitation, there's a 50 percent chance, though snow accumulation doesn't seem likely outside a few isolated areas.
Winds are not expected to let up as the week progresses, bringing partly cloudy nights with lows in the upper 20s. Tuesday promises a respite from the erratic weather with sunny skies and a high near 42 degrees, with the wind calming somewhat but still capable of gusting up to 15 mph.
Looming ahead, Wednesday threatens to dampen commutes with rain likely after 1 p.m., a 60 percent chance as per the National Weather Service. The rain is here to stay into the night, with lows around 40. And Thursday will bring a chance of showers amid mostly cloudy conditions, and a high nearing 49 degrees. A partly cloudy Thursday night will follow, with a low around 37.
As we round off the week, the forecast offers Chicagoans a return to mostly sunny skies by Friday, with a high near 50, and similarly, partly cloudy nights with the mercury hovering around 38. On Saturday, "Mostly sunny, with a high near 51," affirms the National Weather Service, bringing a close to the week with fair conditions that belie the fleeting wintry surprise at its start. Meanwhile, Fox 32 Meteorologist Mark Strehl mirrors the sentiment of an ephemeral snowy Monday, emphasizing that the snow showers "won't last though" and highs could reach about 40 degrees amid blustery conditions.
