Chicago weather: Memorial Day sunshine leads off a mild, gradually warming week

Chicago weather: Memorial Day sunshine leads off a mild, gradually warming week

Chicagoland is enjoying a beautiful Memorial Day with mostly sunny skies and highs in the upper 60s—though it’s cooler by the lake once again.

CHICAGO - Chicagoland is enjoying a beautiful Memorial Day with mostly sunny skies and highs in the upper 60s—though it’s cooler by the lake once again. Today marks the ninth straight day of below-normal temperatures.

Future Forecast

What we know:

Tuesday will be mostly cloudy with highs again in the upper 60s. While the day should stay mostly dry, there is a chance for isolated afternoon showers. The better chance for rain arrives Tuesday night into Wednesday.

Wednesday will be mostly cloudy with highs in the low 60s and a continued chance of scattered showers. That chance of rain could linger into Wednesday night and Thursday, though coverage and totals are still uncertain.

The Ferris wheel at Navy Pier in Chicago has its final gondola installed on Wednesday, March 2, 2016. (Nancy Stone/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service via Getty Images / Getty Images)

Thursday brings the start of a warming trend, with highs reaching the upper 60s under partly sunny skies. Temperatures will remain slightly below normal, but the pattern is shifting.

By Friday, more summer-like weather arrives. Expect mostly sunny skies and highs climbing into the upper 70s. The weekend will feel even better—Saturday will reach the low 70s with sunshine, and Sunday will warm into the upper 70s under partly sunny skies.

What we don't know:

Forecast models differ on how widespread or impactful midweek showers may be, especially Tuesday night through Thursday. That system still bears watching.