131  
FXUS63 KLOT 121124  
AFDLOT  
 
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION  
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHICAGO/ROMEOVILLE, IL  
624 AM CDT MON MAY 12 2025  
   
KEY MESSAGES
 
 
- SUMMER-LIKE WARMTH AND INCREASING HUMIDITY EXPECTED THROUGH  
MIDWEEK, THOUGH LOCATIONS NEAR LAKE MICHIGAN WILL REMAIN  
COOLER MOST DAYS. NEAR-RECORD TEMPERATURES ARE EXPECTED ON  
THURSDAY.  
 
- ISOLATED TO SCATTERED SHOWERS AND STORMS ARE EXPECTED THROUGH  
THURSDAY, THOUGH MANY HOURS AND AREAS WILL REMAIN DRY.  
 
- THERE IS A THREAT FOR SEVERE WEATHER THURSDAY AFTERNOON AND  
EVENING, CONTINGENT ON STORMS DEVELOPING.  
 

 
   
DISCUSSION
 
 
ISSUED AT 336 AM CDT MON MAY 12 2025  
 
THROUGH WEDNESDAY NIGHT:  
 
THE CLOSED UPPER LOW THAT HAS BEEN MEANDERING ACROSS THE LOWER  
MISSISSIPPI VALLEY THE PAST FEW DAYS HAS BEGUN TO LIFT NORTH  
TOWARD THE REGION EARLY THIS MORNING. THIS WILL ADVECT LOW-LEVEL  
MOISTURE INTO THE AREA LATER TODAY THROUGH TONIGHT. GUIDANCE  
HAS TRENDED SLOWER WITH THE NORTHWARD ADVANCEMENT OF THE HIGHER  
DEWPOINTS WHICH WILL LIKELY LIMIT ANY DIURNAL PULSE SHOWERS AND  
STORMS TO AREAS MAINLY SOUTH OF I-80 THROUGH THE DAYTIME HOURS.  
BY THE EVENING THESE SHOWERS AND STORMS WILL BEGIN TO LIFT  
ACROSS THE REST OF THE AREA THROUGH THE OVERNIGHT HOURS TIED TO  
A 700 MB VORT LOBE AS IT DRIFTS NORTHWEST ACROSS THE AREA. SOME  
OF THE MOST RECENT GUIDANCE SEEMS TO HAVE A BETTER HANDLE ON  
THIS FEATURE, TIED TO CONVECTION OVER FAR NORTHEAST ALABAMA AS  
OF THIS WRITING. POPS ONLY IN THE SLIGHT/20% CHANCE RANGE  
OVERNIGHT INTO TUESDAY MORNING MAY ULTIMATELY NEED TO BE BUMPED  
UP FOR OUR NEXT ISSUANCE. GIVEN INCREASING LOW-LEVEL MOISTURE  
OVER THE COLD LAKE, SUSPECT FOG DEVELOPMENT WILL COMMENCE LATE  
TONIGHT THROUGH MUCH OF THE DAY ON TUESDAY, SOME OF WHICH COULD  
OOZE INLAND ALONG THE ILLINOIS SHORE, PARTICULARLY INTO LAKE  
COUNTY.  
 
WARM AND HUMID CONDITIONS WILL CONTINUE TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY  
AS THE UPPER LOW SLOWLY LIFTS ACROSS THE OHIO VALLEY LEADING TO  
ADDITIONAL ISOLATED TO SCATTERED SHOWERS AND STORMS, WITH THE  
GREATEST COVERAGE EXPECTED ON TUESDAY ACROSS NORTHWEST ILLINOIS  
WITHIN THE VICINITY OF THE AFOREMENTIONED VORT LOBE. GIVEN WEAK  
FLOW ALOFT, ANY STORMS THE NEXT FEW DAYS SHOULD BE PULSE-LIKE  
CAPABLE OF LIGHTNING AND LOCALIZED DOWNPOURS. ANY OF THE TALLER  
STORMS WOULD BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING LOCALLY GUSTY WINDS AFTER  
THEY COLLAPSE/PULSE BACK DOWN. LOW-LEVEL INSTABILITY PAIRED  
WITH AREAS OF LOW-LEVEL VORTICITY SUGGEST A FEW FUNNEL CLOUDS  
ALSO CAN'T BE FULLY RULED OUT. HIGHS ARE FORECAST TO WARM INTO  
THE MID 70S TO MID 80S INLAND WHILE STILL NOTABLY COOLER NEAR  
THE LAKE IN THE 60S TO LOWER 70S.  
 
PETR  
 
THURSDAY THROUGH SUNDAY:  
 
THE SUMMER-LIKE WARMTH AND HUMIDITY WILL THEN CONTINUE INTO  
THURSDAY, WITH EVEN WARMER TEMPERATURES EXPECTED DUE TO THE  
CONTINUED SOLAR INSOLATION AND INCREASING WARM AIR ADVECTION. IN  
FACT, IT'S QUITE POSSIBLE THAT WE COULD SEE OUR FIRST 90 DEGREE  
READINGS OF THE YEAR IN OUR FORECAST AREA ON THURSDAY. IF THAT  
WERE TO OCCUR, THEN THE DAILY HIGH TEMPERATURES FOR MAY 15TH IN  
CHICAGO AND ROCKFORD (91 AND 90, RESPECTIVELY) WOULD POTENTIALLY  
BE IN JEOPARDY. FOR ONCE, THESE WARMER TEMPERATURES MAY REACH  
AT LEAST SOME OF OUR LAKESIDE LOCALES AS WINDS ON THURSDAY  
SHOULD BE BREEZY AND FROM THE SOUTH.  
 
LATE WEDNESDAY INTO THURSDAY, THE WESTERN CONUS TROUGH IS  
EXPECTED TO EJECT INTO THE NORTHERN PLAINS AND UPPER MIDWEST.  
THE LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM THAT DEVELOPS IN RESPONSE WILL HELP  
ADVECT A MORE PRONOUNCED EML INTO THE MIDWEST AND WILL ALSO  
CAUSE KINEMATIC FIELDS ACROSS THE REGION TO STRENGTHEN. THIS  
WILL AUGMENT THE PRE-EXISTING WARMTH AND MOISTURE TO FOSTER A  
POTENTIAL THREAT FOR SEVERE WEATHER ACROSS THE REGION LATE  
THURSDAY INTO EARLY FRIDAY. THIS SEVERE WEATHER SET-UP REMAINS  
CONDITIONAL INTO OUR AREA DUE TO UNCERTAINTIES REGARDING IMPACTS  
OF CAPPING, VERY DRY MID-UPPER LEVELS (DRY AIR ENTRAINMENT  
INFLUENCE), DISPLACED FORCING MAINLY TO THE NORTH AND WEST OF  
THE AREA, ETC., WHICH WILL IMPACT WHETHER STORMS WILL BE ABLE  
TO INITIATE THIS FAR SOUTH. THUS, WHILE CONFIDENCE IS RELATIVELY  
HIGH AT THIS POINT IN TIME THAT THE PARAMETER SPACE THAT WILL  
BE IN PLACE OVER THE REGION LATE THURSDAY WILL LARGELY BE  
FAVORABLE FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS, CONFIDENCE IS STILL FAIRLY  
LOW IN WHETHER EVERYTHING WILL COME TOGETHER JUST RIGHT FOR THIS  
PARAMETER SPACE TO BE FULLY UTILIZED, OR WHETHER WE'LL EVEN SEE  
STORMS AT ALL. STAY TUNED!  
 
OUR WEATHER FOR FRIDAY WILL LARGELY DEPEND ON HOW THINGS PLAY  
OUT ON THURSDAY WITH THE LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM'S EVOLUTION. A  
STRONG COLD FRONTAL PASSAGE THURSDAY NIGHT/FRIDAY MORNING WOULD  
TEND TO FAVOR DRY AND BREEZY (TO POTENTIALLY WINDY) CONDITIONS  
ACROSS THE AREA ON FRIDAY. ON THE OTHER HAND THOUGH, THE NEARBY  
PRESENCE OF THE AFOREMENTIONED UPPER-LEVEL TROUGH COULD STILL  
SUPPORT SHOWER AND THUNDERSTORMS CHANCES HERE IF THE COLD FRONT  
ARRIVES TOO EARLY OR TOO LATE AND/OR ISN'T ROBUST ENOUGH TO  
SUFFICIENTLY SCOUR OUT THE WARMTH AND MOISTURE IN THE AREA,  
PARTICULARLY SOUTH OF I-80. WHILE THERE SHOULD BE A REPRIEVE  
FROM THE WARMER AND AT TIMES STORMIER CONDITIONS THIS COMING  
WEEKEND, THE OVERALL WEATHER PATTERN ACROSS THE CENTRAL CONUS IS  
EXPECTED TO REMAIN FAIRLY ACTIVE INTO NEXT WEEK. THIS COULD  
RESULT IN RENEWED CHANCES FOR SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS IN OUR  
AREA DURING NEXT WORK WEEK.  
 
OGOREK/PETR  
 

 
   
AVIATION /12Z TAFS THROUGH 18Z TUESDAY/
 
 
ISSUED AT 624 AM CDT MON MAY 12 2025  
 
MAIN CONCERNS:  
 
- POTENTIAL FOR LOW CIGS AND REDUCED VSBY LATE TONIGHT/EARLY  
TUESDAY MORNING.  
 
- CHANCE FOR SHRA THIS EVENING AND OVERNIGHT.  
 
VFR CONDITIONS WILL PREVAIL THROUGH AT LEAST MID TO LATE THIS  
EVENING. EXPECT EASTERLY WINDS TO INCREASE TO 10+ KT THIS  
MORNING AND THEN EASE BACK BELOW 10 KT THIS EVENING.  
 
SHOWERS SOUTH OF THE TERMINALS (AND PERHAPS AN ISOLATED TS OR  
TWO WELL SOUTH) LATER THIS AFTERNOON MAY MOVE INTO THE AREA ON  
A WEAKENING TREND THIS EVENING. IF SHOWERS OCCUR THIS EVENING,  
SUSPECT THEY'D BE NON-IMPACTFUL, SO WITHHELD ANY FORMAL PRECIP  
MENTION. A STRONGER DISTURBANCE MAY SUPPORT A MORE COHERENT AREA  
OF SHOWERS WITH REDUCED VSBY OVERNIGHT INTO EARLY TUESDAY.  
OPTED TO INCLUDE A PROB30 MENTION FOR THIS AT THE CHICAGO METRO  
TERMINALS. SHOWER CHANCES MAY INCREASE IN THE RFD AREA AFTER  
12Z TUESDAY, BEYOND THEIR CURRENT TAF PERIOD.  
 
SOME OF THE GUIDANCE BRINGS IN LOW CIGS (LOW MVFR TO IFR) AS  
EARLY AS LATE THIS EVENING. THIS MAY STILL BE A BIT TOO  
AGGRESSIVE, SO CONTINUED TO LEAN ON THE SLOWER GUIDANCE FOR  
NOW, WHICH SUGGESTS LOWER MVFR CIGS (OR LOWER) DEVELOPING AFTER  
06Z TUESDAY. IF SUB-1000 FT CIGS OCCUR, THEY SHOULD BE IN THE  
300-500 FT RANGE. LOWER CIGS SHOULD IMPROVE TOWARD MIDDAY  
TUESDAY. FINALLY, THE HIGHER HUMIDITY AIR MASS AND LIGHTER  
WINDS EARLY TUESDAY SHOULD SUPPORT MODESTLY REDUCED VSBY. DENSE  
FOG MAY DEVELOP OVER THE LAKE AND STREAM ONTO THE ILLINOIS  
LAKESHORE, BUT LIKELY REMAIN EAST OF MDW AND ORD.  
 
CASTRO  
 

 
   
LOT WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES
 
 
IL...NONE.  
IN...NONE.  
LM...NONE.  
 

 
 

 
 
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