The isolated rain showers that fell Tuesday morning and early afternoon may be the only rain we see for at least the next week as strong ridging builds in over the central United States. As a result, temperatures will begin to warm through the holiday weekend, but dry and sinking air will keep our skies mostly dry during that time.

The longer-range rainfall outlooks that take us through the beginning of September favor a slightly higher probability for below average precipitation. This dry spell could end up causing drought conditions to worsen across southern Wisconsin and northern Illinois.

There was slight improvement in the drought conditions in northern Illinois over the last couple of weeks, but little improvement in southern Wisconsin. With August’s rainfall nearing two and a half inches below where we should be for the end of the month, that deficit will continue to grow the next couple of days. This will also carry over into the month of September.

Looking ahead to the middle of next week there appears to be a cold front that tries to move closer to the Great Lakes. However, the chance for precipitation does appear to be low at this point.