Chicago, IL Weather
Today's Forecast
Isolated rain showers before 1am. Clear. Low around 62, with temperatures rising to around 64 overnight. North wind 5 to 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
7-Day Outlook
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Data from the National Weather Service
Last updated Sun, Aug 23, 1:01 AM UTC
Active alerts for Chicago
- Beach Hazards Statement
Northern Cook; Central Cook; Lake
Relayed from the National Weather Service. See every active warning. For anything affecting your safety, use weather.gov.
Winter in Chicago
Chicago averages 39 inches of snow a year, according to NOAA’s 1991–2020 climate normals — a regular snow place. Snow several times a winter, well-practised response. Closures happen but need a real storm.
That is why local snowfall thresholds differ so much from one town to the next: a district that plans for 39 inches a year is equipped differently from one that never sees any. Here, roughly 6 inches in a single storm is where a normal school day comes under threat.
Upper air over Chicago
The nearest radiosonde launch is Lincoln, about 149 miles away. A weather balloon goes up twice a day and measures temperature, humidity and wind all the way through the atmosphere — which is what forecasters actually read to judge whether storms will fire, and how a surface forecast was arrived at.