Marine Weather and Tide Forecast for Elmhurst, IL

DISCUSSION
Issued at 228 PM CDT Sat May 17 2025

Today's gusty winds will diminish as low pressure over the upper Great Lakes moves east and out of the region tonight. A weak cold front trailing west from this low will move southward across the western Great Lakes Sunday, becoming enhanced by Lake Michigan, and surging inland from Lake Michigan Sunday. The result will be brisk northeasterly winds and much cooler temps, especially near the lake. Highs should climb into the low to mid 70s well inland Sunday, ranging to just the lower 50s near the lake by afternoon.

Attention will turn to a deep upper trough progged to dig southward across the western U.S. later this weekend. Rain chances will gradually be on the increase early next week as this deep trough ejects negatively tilted out on the central High Plains early next week. Guidance is in pretty good agreement bringing a lead impulse, likely convectively enhanced, emanating from this trough across Illinois Monday morning. This lead wave will be encountering drier and much more stable air mass over our CWA, but could still produce some showers (mostly light) Monday, especially southwestern CWA and during the morning.

Medium range guidance is in good agreement on closing off a strong mid-upper level low within this larger trough as the entire system moves eastward across the Plains and toward the Midwest Monday night and Tuesday. Strong low level jet will draw seasonably moist air northward, then up and over the warm front stalled well to our south. Strong, deep isentropic ascent aided by impressive coupled upped jet structure should provide ample forcing for rain and perhaps some embedded thunderstorms. This set up continues to look favorable for a soaking rainfall across much of our CWA later Monday night into Tuesday. As this increasingly vertically stacking closed low meanders slowly eastward across the mid-Mississippi Valley and into the Great Lakes region Tuesday-Thursday, there will be continued chance for scattered showers.

Brisk winds off the lake, overcast skies, and rain should lead to a raw and unseasonably chilly day Tuesday with highs struggling to get much above 50 near the lake and not too far above 50 north of I-80. Well inland from Lake Michigan, temps could rebound a bit into the 60s Wednesday and especially Thursday with some breaks in the clouds and showers. Near the lake, once the temperature drops below 60 tonight, it is likely that they won't reach 60 degrees again until next weekend at the earliest!

- Izzi

AVIATION /00Z TAFS THROUGH 06Z SUNDAY/
Issued at 603 PM CDT Sat May 17 2025

Gusty northwest winds should ease after sunset in response to surface decoupling and modestly turn northwesterly as the surface pressure gradient reorients ahead of an approaching surface high pressure system. Broken VFR stratocu will prevail overnight.

A band of MVFR cigs may swing into the terminals toward daybreak and last through mid morning. Thereafter, winds are expected to flop east-northeasterly as a lake-enhanced front shifts inland. East to northeasterly winds will then prevail through the remainder of the TAF period.

Borchardt

LOT WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES
IL...None.
IN...None.
LM...Small Craft Advisory until 7 PM CDT this evening for the IL nearshore waters.