314  
FXUS63 KILX 071120  
AFDILX  
 
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION  
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LINCOLN IL  
620 AM CDT THU MAY 7 2026  
   
KEY MESSAGES
 
 
- PERIODIC SHOWER AND STORM CHANCES WILL CONTINUE THROUGH AT  
LEAST THE MIDDLE OF NEXT WEEK. SHOWERS AND POSSIBLY (20%  
CHANCE) A THUNDERSTORM NEAR THE I-74 CORRIDOR THIS AFTERNOON  
MAY GENERATE LOCALIZED SMALL HAIL AND WIND GUSTS OVER 40MPH.  
 

 
   
DISCUSSION
 
 
ISSUED AT 201 AM CDT THU MAY 7 2026  
 
***** FEW GUSTY SHOWERS THIS AFTERNOON, RAIN TOMORROW *****  
 
TRANQUIL CONDITIONS ARE OBSERVED ACROSS CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST  
ILLINOIS EARLY THURSDAY MORNING, AS SURFACE HIGH PRESSURE IS  
FAVORING LIGHT AND VARIABLE WINDS. A BAND OF MID LEVEL CLOUDS IN  
WEST-CENTRAL ILLINOIS AT 2AM IS SLATED TO SHIFT EAST ACROSS THE  
COUNTY WARNING AREA (CWA) THROUGH DAYBREAK, BUT GIVEN THE SHORT (2-4  
HOUR) DURATION THESE ARE OVERHEAD IN ANY GIVEN LOCATION WE SUSPECT  
TEMPERATURES WILL DROP INTO THE MID 30S FOR SPOTTY FROST BY DAWN.  
 
A WEAK MID LEVEL DISTURBANCE WILL SPARK A FEW SHOWERS ACROSS  
PORTIONS OF CENTRAL ILLINOIS THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING, MAINLY  
NORTH OF A RUSHVILLE PARIS LINE. WITH ENOUGH SUNSHINE AHEAD OF THESE  
SHOWERS LATE MORNING INTO EARLY AFTERNOON, DEEP MIXING SHOULD FAVOR  
AN INVERTED V UP TO 750-800MB AND EVEN 75-150 HUNDRED J/KG SBCAPE  
THROUGH THE HAIL GROWTH ZONE. THIS SUGGESTS THE STRONGER CELLS MAY  
PRODUCE THUNDER, SMALL HAIL, AND GUSTY WINDS OVER 40 MPH, THOUGH  
LACK OF DEEP MOISTURE SUGGESTS A LOW (LESS THAN 5%) RISK FOR SEVERE  
WEATHER.  
 
YET ANOTHER DISTURBANCE, FAST ON THE HEELS OF THIS ONE, WILL BRING  
MORE NUMEROUS SHOWERS TO THE AREA TOMORROW MORNING INTO EARLY  
AFTERNOON. HIGH RESOLUTION ENSEMBLE FORECAST (HREF) MEAN RAINFALL  
FROM THIS SYSTEM IS GENERALLY BETWEEN 0.25 AND 0.5 INCHES, BUT  
INDIVIDUAL CONVECTIVE ALLOWING MODELS (CAMS) AND THE LOCALIZED  
PROBABILITY MATCHED MEAN (LPMM) SUGGEST A FEW POCKETS OF OVER AN  
INCH MAY OCCUR. IF THE NAM/RAP/GFS ARE RIGHT IN DEPICTING 40-55 KT  
DEEP LAYER SHEAR AND A COUPLE HUNDRED J/KG MUCAPE, WE MAY ALSO HAVE  
A FEW RUMBLES OF THUNDER DURING THE AFTERNOON, BUT ONCE AGAIN THE  
SEVERE WEATHER RISK APPEARS LOW (LESS THAN 5%).  
 
***** MORE SHOWERS SATURDAY NIGHT INTO SUNDAY MORNING *****  
 
THE NEXT SHORTWAVE TROUGH IS FORECAST TO ARRIVE SATURDAY NIGHT.  
AHEAD OF IT, A STRONGER PUSH OF WARM AIR ADVECTION (WAA) WILL WARM  
850MB TEMPERATURES INTO THE 10-12 DEGC RANGE IF YOU BELIEVE THE LOW  
RESOLUTION ENSEMBLE FORECAST (LREF) MEAN. THIS WILL BRING SATURDAY  
AFTERNOON HIGH TEMPERATURES SOLIDLY INTO THE 70S, WITH A 40-75%  
CHANCE (HIGHEST WEST) FOR 75+ DEGF FROM THE NATIONAL BLEND OF MODELS  
(NBM). THIS SYSTEM WILL ALSO BRING ANOTHER ROUND OF SHOWERS AND  
POSSIBLY (20% CHANCE) A FEW THUNDERSTORMS TO THE AREA SATURDAY NIGHT  
INTO SUNDAY MORNING. IN FACT, NBM GIVES A 25-40% CHANCE (HIGHEST  
SOUTH) FOR MORE THAN A HALF INCH OF ADDITIONAL RAINFALL TO THE  
DISTRICT BY NOON SUNDAY.  
 
THE PATTERN REMAINS ACTIVE NEXT WEEK, AS THE PRAIRIE STATE REMAINS  
SANDWICHED BETWEEN A RIDGE OF HIGH PRESSURE ACROSS THE GREAT PLAINS  
AND AN UPPER LEVEL LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM SPINNING OVER EASTERN CANADA.  
GLOBAL MODELS DISAGREE ON TIMING AND PLACEMENT, BUT VIRTUALLY ALL OF  
THEM HAVE ONE OR MORE SHORTWAVE DISTURBANCES SPARKING SHOWERS AND  
STORMS EITHER OVER OUR AREA OR NEARBY NEXT WORK WEEK.  
 

 
   
AVIATION /12Z TAFS THROUGH 12Z FRIDAY/
 
 
ISSUED AT 620 AM CDT THU MAY 7 2026  
 
VFR CONDITIONS WILL PREVAIL AT ALL TAF SITES NEXT 24HRS. HIGH  
CIRRUS WILL ADVECT AND BE OVER THE SITES THIS MORNING. THEN  
SCATTERED CLOUDS AND MID CLOUDS WILL MOVE IN AHEAD OF THE  
BOUNDARY AND ASSOCIATED SHOWERS. THIS WILL AFFECT PIA, BMI, AND  
CMI ONLY. SPI AND DEC WILL REMAIN DRY WITH MID AND HIGH CLOUDS  
THROUGH THE PERIOD. PRECIP WILL START AS VCSH WITH A PROB30 FOR  
MORE SHOWERS AND SLIGHTLY LOWER CIGS...AROUND 7KFT. BELIEVE  
PREDOMINATE SHOWERS WILL OCCUR IN THE AFTERNOON AT PIA AND BMI,  
BUT NOT CMI. AFTER THE PREDOMINATE SHOWERS, WILL HAVE ANOTHER  
PROB30 FOR PIA AND BMI AND JUST VCSH FOR CMI. WINDS WILL BE  
LIGHT THEN BECOME SOUTHWEST AHEAD OF THE SYSTEM, FOLLOWED BY  
WEST TO SOUTHWEST WINDS THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING. SPEEDS WILL  
INCREASE TO GUSTY AT 23-25KTS FOR THE AFTERNOON, THEN BECOME  
LIGHTER AND SOUTH- SOUTHWEST THIS EVENING.  
 

 
   
ILX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES
 
 
NONE.  
 

 
 

 
 
KEY MESSAGES...BUMGARDNER  
DISCUSSION...BUMGARDNER  
AVIATION...AUTEN  
 
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