CHICAGO — A storm is brewing for Friday — but meteorologists aren’t quite sure yet if it will dump snow or rain.
An extra tropical cyclone — a “rotating, organized system of clouds and thunderstorms,” according to the National Weather Service — is forming over the Las Vegas region, and will most likely veer through central Illinois and central Indiana on Friday, said Kevin Doom, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.
How close the storm creeps toward Chicago will determine the city’s weather: Chicago could get anywhere from an inch-plus of rain to several inches of snow, Doom said.
“We’re beating our heads against the wall trying to nail this one down,” Doom said. “Any little difference in the storm’s track can mean a big difference for collateral areas, and Chicago is in the sweet spot for that.”
Doom said Wednesday afternoon the weather’s service computer models “aren’t yet agreeing on the dynamics of the storm.”
The city will see rainy and blustery conditions if the storm tracks closer to and brings along its warmer low-pressure system, Doom said. But Chicago could instead get several inches of snow if the storm stays farther away from the city and cold air sticks around, Doom said.
“It could be either of those outcomes or somewhere in between. It’s still uncertain,” Doom said. “People should be keeping an eye on the forecast.”
Whether it’s a rainy or snowy mix, precipitation is expected in the morning hours around work commutes and into the evening, Doom said.
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