After calm start, active weather to return to Illinois

(FarmWeekNow) — February weather began quietly for Illinois, but that is set to change later this month.

“We don’t have a lot going on this week,” said DTN agriculture meteorologist John Baranick during a Tuesday guest spot on RFD Radio. “You’re looking at temperatures for the next couple of days in the 20s and 30s across the state.”

After that, temperatures in the 30s and 40s will end the week, before readings possibly climb into the 50s.

“It’s not going to really feel like winter, although it’s just right on the doorstep,” he said.

Central and southern Illinois are coming off a snowy finish to January, and much of the state experienced extremely cold temperatures during the last half of the month.

“Models really don’t suggest anything of that arctic nature coming back through at the end of this month,” Baranick said. “They did have potential for us getting colder than normal, but the good news is, through the month of February, our normals are rising.”

As warmer air arrives in Illinois next week, there is the potential for a more active weather pattern.

“If you get some warm air in February, it’s probably followed by something you don’t want to see,” Baranick said. “It looks like it’s going to be an active pattern, especially toward the second half of next week and the week following after that.”

Impacts could include rain, snow, or both. Baranick said you cannot rule out “the potential for freezing rain.”

Jim Taylor, FarmWeekNow

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