940
FXUS63 KLOT 111800
AFDLOT
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHICAGO/ROMEOVILLE, IL
100 PM CDT TUE AUG 11 2026
KEY MESSAGES
- SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WILL AFFECT FAR NORTHERN IL/NORTHWEST
IN EARLY THIS MORNING, WITH ISOLATED INSTANCES OF LARGE HAIL
AND DAMAGING WIND AS WELL AS LOCALIZED FLOODING ARE POSSIBLE.
- POSSIBLE LINE/COMPLEX OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS TO AFFECT THE
AREA BY MID/LATE MORNING INTO EARLY THIS AFTERNOON. SEVERE
WIND GUSTS TO 80 MPH POSSIBLE, ALONG WITH HEAVY RAIN AND
LOCALIZED FLOODING.
- PATTERN REMAINS ACTIVE WITH ADDITIONAL THUNDERSTORM CHANCES
THROUGH THE END OF THE WEEK/WEEKEND.
DISCUSSION
ISSUED AT 253 AM CDT TUE AUG 11 2026
FORECAST REMAINS COMPLEX TODAY, WITH ONGOING STORMS EARLY THIS
MORNING AND THE POTENTIAL EVOLUTION OF A MORE SIGNIFICANT
WIDESPREAD SEVERE WEATHER/DAMAGING WIND THREAT LATER THIS
MORNING AND EARLY AFTERNOON.
EARLY MORNING SURFACE ANALYSIS DEPICTS A RATHER DIFFUSE WARM
FRONTAL ZONE STRETCHING FROM NORTH-CENTRAL IA EAST-SOUTHEAST
ACROSS NORTHERN IL AND NORTHWEST IN, ROUGHLY FROM NORTH OF THE
QUAD CITIES TO LOT AND VPZ. KLOT VAD WIND PROFILE AND SPC/RAP
MESOANALYSIS INDICATES A ~25 KT WEST-SOUTHWESTERLY LOW LEVEL JET
IMPINGING ON THE FRONTAL ZONE, WITH ASSOCIATED ISENTROPIC
ASCENT ATOP THE SHALLOW FRONTAL SLOPE RESULTING IN ISOLATED
THUNDERSTORMS FROM NEAR ARX OVER TO THE LAKE MICHIGAN SHORE NEAR
MICHIGAN CITY IN AT THIS HOUR. LOW-LEVEL JET FORCING MAY
INCREASE A BIT DURING THE PREDAWN HOURS AS A SUBTLE MID-LEVEL
SHORT WAVE TRACKS ACROSS THE AREA. THERE HAS BEEN A SIGNAL IN
CAM GUIDANCE FOR POTENTIAL ADDITIONAL DEVELOPMENT ALONG THE
FRONT PRIOR TO SUNRISE, AND WE CONTINUE TO MONITOR FOR THAT.
MUCAPE NEAR 3000 J/KG AND ~40 KTS OF EFFECTIVE SHEAR PER SPC
MESOANALYSIS WOULD SUPPORT STORM ORGANIZATION AND AN ASSOCIATED
SEVERE (PRIMARILY WIND/HAIL) THREAT AS EVIDENCED BY THE
SCATTERED SUPERCELL STORMS CURRENTLY OVER LM/IWX'S CWA.
ATTENTION THEN TURNS TO A DEVELOPING AREA OF THUNDERSTORMS OVER
FAR SOUTHEAST SOUTH DAKOTA, WHICH MAY EVOLVE INTO A MORE
WIDESPREAD AND POTENTIALLY SIGNIFICANT SEVERE WEATHER THREAT
ACROSS OUR FORECAST AREA LATER THIS MORNING AND EARLY AFTERNOON.
CAM GUIDANCE HAS BEEN CONSISTENT IN THIS CLUSTER OF STORMS
EVENTUALLY GROWING UPSCALE INTO A FORWARD-PROPAGATING MCS ACROSS
NORTHWEST IA/SOUTHWEST MN OVER THE NEXT FEW HOURS AND
EVENTUALLY TRACKING EAST-SOUTHEAST ALONG THE CORRIDOR STRONG
INSTABILITY ALONG THE AFOREMENTIONED FRONTAL ZONE INTO NORTHERN
IL TOWARD MID-LATE MORNING. THE COMBINATION OF UNSEASONABLY
STRONG WESTERLY MID-LEVEL FLOW AND RESULTING DEEP SHEAR(50+ KTS
AT 700 MB), STEEP MID-LEVEL LAPSE RATES (NEAR 8 C/KM) MUCAPE
VALUES IN EXCESS OF 3500 J/KG, THE POTENTIAL FOR SIGNIFICANT
SEVERE WEATHER APPEARS RATHER HIGH. SEVERAL CAMS ARE DEPICTING
POCKETS SURFACE WIND GUSTS OF 80+ MPH WITH THIS MCS ACROSS
PORTIONS OF THE FORECAST AREA. A TORNADO THREAT WOULD ALSO
LIKELY EXIST GIVEN SUFFICIENT LOW-LEVEL SHEAR AND THE PROXIMITY
OF THE PREVIOUSLY MENTIONED SURFACE FRONTAL BOUNDARY. WHILE THE
EXACT EVOLUTION OF THIS MCS REMAINS UNCERTAIN, SPC'S DAY 1
ENHANCED (LEVEL 3 OF 5) FOR OUT FORECAST AREA APPEARS WARRANTED.
CURRENTLY TIMING OF THIS THREAT LOOKS TO BE FROM PERHAPS 9 AM
IN OUR NORTHWEST CWA THROUGH AROUND 3 PM IN THE FAR EAST. THERE
MAY ALSO BE SOME CONVECTIVE DEVELOPMENT ALONG THE FRONT AHEAD OF
THE MCS, IF A STRONG MCV DEVELOPS PRIOR TO REACHING THE CWA
INCREASES WARM-ADVECTION ASCENT AHEAD OF THE MAIN CLUSTER AS
INDICATED BY SOME OF THE CAMS.
AS IF THE SIGNIFICANT SEVERE/WIDESPREAD DAMAGING WIND THREAT
WASN'T ENOUGH, WE'LL ALSO NEED TO MONITOR THE LOCATION OF HEAVY
RAINFALL AND FLOODING POTENTIAL - PARTICULARLY FOR THE URBANIZED
CHICAGO METRO AREA AS WELL AS LOCATIONS WHICH SAW 3-5"+ OF
RAINFALL SUNDAY AND EVENING. HAD CONTEMPLATED ISSUING A FLOOD
WATCH, THOUGH WITH CURRENT PREDAWN CONVECTION SLOW TO FILL-IN
(SO FAR) AND SOME UNCERTAINTY REMAINING WITH THE EVOLUTION OF
THE MCS LATER THIS MORNING, ELECTED TO HOLD OFF AT THIS TIME
PENDING SOME FURTHER CLARITY ON LOCATION OF HIGHER RAINFALL
IMPACTS.
IN THE WAKE OF TODAY'S EXPECTED MCS, A LULL IN CONVECTIVE
ACTIVITY IS EXPECTED FROM LATER THIS AFTERNOON INTO TONIGHT,
THOUGH THIS WILL LIKELY DEPEND ON THE SIZE AND MAGNITUDE OF THE
REMNANT COLD POOL AND HOW FAR SOUTH THE EFFECTIVE FRONTAL ZONE
ENDS UP ALONG IT'S SOUTHERN PERIPHERY. THE OVERALL PATTERN SOME
UNCERTAINTY IS HOW FAR SOUTH AN AREA OF SURFACE HIGH PRESSURE
BUILDS ACROSS THE WESTERN LAKES IN THE FRIDAY/SATURDAY PERIOD.
THIS WILL HAVE SIGNIFICANT IMPACTS ON THUNDERSTORM TRENDS/TIMING
FOR THE LOCAL AREA.
RATZER
AVIATION /18Z TAFS THROUGH 00Z THURSDAY/
ISSUED AT 1253 PM CDT TUE AUG 11 2026
MAINLY VFR CONDITIONS THIS AFTERNOON, BUT DO EXPECT
REDEVELOPMENT AT SOME POINT (ALREADY SEEING SOME ACROSS IA AS
OF 1740Z) AND WILL NEED TO MONITOR THIS FOR THE REST OF THE
AFTERNOON. CURRENTLY HAVE VCTS IN FOR 23Z-2Z TIMEFRAME FOR THIS
IDEA. WINDS LIKELY GO LIGHT OVERNIGHT WITH CIGS TRENDING DOWN
WITH POTENTIAL FOR LIFR CONDITIONS ESP TOWARD DAYBREAK, WHETHER
FG/BR OR LOW STRATUS...AND THINK THIS WILL TRY TO MIX TO VFR
AGAIN TOWARD DAYBREAK. NOT IMPOSSIBLE THERE COULD BE ANOTHER
ROUND OF TSRA BETWEEN 6-12Z BUT VERY LOW CONFIDENCE IN THIS
ATTM. WINDS PRIMARILY LIGHT AND E/NE THRU PERIOD BUT COULD GO
MORE S AT GYY IF LAKE/LAND BREEZES DEVELOP.
LOT WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES
IL...LAKESHORE FLOOD WARNING UNTIL 5 PM CDT THIS AFTERNOON FOR
ILZ104.
IN...LAKESHORE FLOOD WARNING UNTIL 5 PM CDT THIS AFTERNOON FOR
INZ001-INZ002.
LM...NONE.
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