Tracking weekend snow: Winter weather threats return to Chicagoland

CHICAGO — Chicagoland is gearing up for what could be the first snow of the season this weekend.

Friday began with mild and breezy conditions and some showers, but heading into the weekend, temperatures are expected to take a steep dip.

The dramatic drop in temperatures could take some by surprise, as Friday is shaping up to be Chicago’s 5th consecutive day with temperatures in the 60s, a level 10 or more degrees above normal. 

Sadly, however, Friday is the final day with temperatures at this level for the foreseeable future. 

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By Saturday morning, parts of Chicagoland near the lake could begin to see some lake effect showers as the temperatures take a dip.

Isolated showers are possible through the morning hours and into the early afternoon.

Things ramp up a bit between 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. Friday as widespread showers move in.

It will be a cold rain on Saturday afternoon, which will transition to a rain/snow mix overnight, heading into Sunday morning. 

The chilly temperatures and slushy rain/snow mix will stick around into the early morning hours on Sunday. It is expected to be the type of snow that you won’t really need to shovel and it is expected to melt off quickly, but could cause a mess.

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While a weekend of winter weather threats is ahead, more snow could be on the way as the workweek begins, as the potential for lake effect snow continues on Monday and into Tuesday.

Temperatures on Sunday and Monday will also be chilly. Highs will reach into the mid to upper 30s. Wind chills by Monday morning will be in the teens, maybe even high single digits.

Snow totals uncertain

It’s still up in the air on just how much snow Chicagoland may see over the weekend.

The amount of snow that falls is dependent on an arctic air mass and the low that it is associated with.

If Chicagoland sees that cooler air plunge in sooner, say Saturday afternoon, it may transition over to snow sooner. And this could lead to more accumulation. But as of now, it does seem that the transition will happen sometime overnight Saturday into early Sunday morning.