CHICAGO — Put away your winter jacket at your own risk.
While Chicago saw some unseasonably warm spring temperatures last weekend, forecasts show the cold will be making a return in the next few days.
It’ll be mostly sunny and breezy over the weekend, with high daytime temperatures spanning the mid- to high 50s, according to the National Weather Service. But overnight lows could get close to freezing Saturday and Sunday.
Rainstorms are also forecast for the area Thursday into Friday, giving Chicagoans the full gamut of springtime weather, said Scott Collis, an atmospheric scientist with Argonne National Laboratory.
“If you don’t like the weather, wait a day or so,” Collis said. “At any moment, we could be drawing our winds from Alaska or Canada, or down south in the Gulf of the Mexico, which is what’s bringing these springtime storms.”
Following our summery weekend, Collis said the weather will be “a little more seasonable” over the next week. Residents may want to think twice about gardening too early, as the last freeze of the season typically comes in early May, Collis said.
“Putting your jackets away depends on your appetite for risk,” Collis said. “This time of year in Chicago is highly variable.”
The good news is that summer is approaching.
As the Northern Hemisphere moves into summer, there will be “less of a gradient” in weather, causing the city to warm up quickly, Collis said. Meterological summer begins June 1.
But until then, locals should expect a roller coaster of a spring.
“We can experience everything here from the arctic to the tropics,” Collis said. “There’s no ocean to moderate the weather and keep temperatures more consistent.”
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