Monday forecast: Chilly for most of Chicagoland, soaking rains begin to arrive overnight

Chicagoland residents might ask themselves this week: Is it really the second half of May?

Well, the calendar says yes, but the weather says no.

Temperatures will be considerably chillier than normal, starting Monday, when the forecasted high of 56 degrees at O’Hare International Airport is 16 degrees below the typical high of 72 for May 19.

However, there will be a wide temp range Monday around Chicagoland, between about 52 and 72 degrees. Inland areas away from the lake will see highs in the 60s, with far southern and southwest locations possibly getting into the low 70s. Along the lake, meanwhile, Monday’s highs will only reach the low to mid-50s.

Winds will be sustained out of the northeast at about 16 miles per hour Monday, with gusts up to 25, then winds will increase overnight and into Tuesday, with gusts up to 35.

Soaking rains coming

As far as rainfall, there’s a chance for a couple showers Monday, otherwise it looks to remain dry.

That won’t stay the case for long, as soaking rains with embedded thunderstorms begin to move into Chicagoland overnight then last through Tuesday and into Wednesday, with around 1 to 3 inches possible around the area.

Most of the Tuesday morning commute will be rainy, with a lot falling quickly and creating low visibility in some locations. The rainfall becomes more scattered by Tuesday afternoon, but thunderstorm chances continue to persist into Tuesday evening.

By Tuesday night, most locations in Chicagoland will likely have gotten about an inch of rain, with some areas receiving more. Then, even more rain is forecast for Wednesday.

The chiller-than-normal temps will persist around Chicagoland this week, especially in the middle part of the week, with highs in the low to mid-50s in the coolest locations on Tuesday and Wednesday.

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May 21-25 average temperature anomaly

The near-term forecast shows temps well below normal for the Midwest and Northeast as a significant pattern change takes shape, with regular troughs digging out of Canada bringing frequent cool-air intrusions.

May’s warming trend

As you can see below, average highs at O’Hare trend into the low 70s by the third week of May, so this week will be considerably cooler than normal.

Temps look to perk up by the end of the week as we head into Memorial Day weekend and the unofficial start of summer, but as of now things still look to remain cooler than normal around Chicagoland