Northwest flow wrings out the muggy air--for now
Northwest winds guide a series of comfortable Canadian air masses into the Midwest
over the next several weeks, all but eliminating Chicago's exposure to prolonged heat.
Surges of humid air will raise the possibility of thundery weather from time to time --
the next due here Monday into Tuesday. While predominantly dry weather occurs the
next few days, bright sun and a hint of instability in the warmer hours, minor
jet-stream disturbances and converging winds along an inland-moving lake breeze
Thursday and Friday afternoons may ignite spotty showers or t-storms. Known as
diurnal thunderstorms because they bubble into existence as temperatures rise and
low-level air becomes buoyant, they fade quickly once the sun sets.
Gusty thunderstorms swept across Lake Michigan into the area between Holland and
Grand Rapids last night behind an eye-catching shelf cloud. Similar t-storms in
southwest Wisconsin late Wednesday produced 50 m.p.h. wind gusts and 1-inch hail
near Dodgeville.
DENVER'S RECORD-BREAKING 24-DAY 90+ DEGREE STREAK ENDS -- FINALLY!
Denver -- after a record-breaking 24 consecutive days above 90 -- reported a high of
just 88 degrees Wednesday.
--Tom Skilling, Chief Meteorologist, WGN-TV/Chicago Tribune