While the Chicago region may see a significant weather system this weekend, there is increasing suspicion that it may be a rain-driven event based on the most recent model runs utilized by the NBC 5 Storm Team.
At first, models were suggesting that by some point during the weekend, the rain would turn into snow; one model suggested a significant snowfall, while the other suggested more rain.
The two models are getting closer together, according to updated model guidance that was made public on Tuesday. However, rain will now seem to be the main precipitation type for the majority of the region, rather than snow.
Forecast models predict that rain will arrive on Saturday morning and that it will occasionally bring downpours to the area.
On Saturday night, the rain is expected to become less concentrated, but there is a possibility that thunderstorms will form in central and southern Illinois. These storms may even affect the farthest southern areas of the NBC 5 viewing area, which includes Kankakee and LaSalle counties.
Although it is too early to tell where a storm will develop and hit, storms may also affect Northwest Indiana.
That rain will eventually turn to snow late Saturday and early Sunday morning, though significant accumulations are not anticipated at this time.