Late-week rain & cooler temperatures stick around into the weekend

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ROCKFORD (WREX) — Daily rain chances stick around as a stubborn area of low pressure meanders slowly. Rounds of rain and cooler temperatures stick around into the weekend.

Spring showers persist:

An upper level low is spinning slowly through the Midwest Thursday morning. With its slow movement, daily rain chances in the days to come are ahead.

Thursday morning is off to a wet start, with widespread and steady rain falling across Northern Illinois. The morning hours feature some thunder, though severe weather isn't likely. Rain slowly diminishes in coverage in the afternoon, with more dry time than wet time likely.

Another round of showers develop late Thursday. Lighter rain is likely to impact Friday morning's commute. Showers should begin to lighten up overnight Friday into Saturday morning.

One final push of wet weather is possible overnight Saturday into Sunday morning. There is some uncertainty regarding the weekend's rain chances, as some models keep rain south of the Stateline. If outdoor activities are ahead for the weekend, keep a close eye on the forecast in the short-term.

Temperatures drop a bit:

The headline above is a bit misleading, as temperatures only drop to near average. Over the past five days, high temperatures in Rockford have been between 10° and 25° above average. Through the weekend, temperatures settle back closer to average in the low-to-mid-60s.

That return to average wouldn't be too terrible if that's where temperatures stopped their descent. Unfortunately for folks who enjoy warm weather, that's not going to be the case next week.

Temperatures tumble into the 50s by the middle of the next work week, which is 5° to 10° shy of average for mid-April.