iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

Always interesting when Illinois shows up in a hurricane cone. 🙂 We could actually use a little rain around here.

Forecast track map for Tropical Depression 9, expected to be a hurricane at landfall on the Gulf Coast. Illinois is within the cone of uncertainty for the storm’s remnants.

Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

My 11 year old has been binging The Muppet Show. Enjoys it even though I have to explain every guest star. Hopefully Disney finally gets on with that reboot.

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 30/08/2026

With our first Open House at work in 19 years, I had a good size crowd for our special balloon launch.

Holding the parachute that goes up with the balloon

Carrying the weather balloon out of the inflation shelter

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 26/07/2026

These dew points are absolutely gross.

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 28/06/2026

The 79 degree dew point was enough to drive the family to the relatively cooler basement (72 degrees and not as humid). A/C replacement is scheduled for tomorrow.

Current local conditions: Temperature 84 degrees, dew point 79 degrees, heat index 96.

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 26/06/2026

I’ve been waiting all month for my A/C to be replaced. Luckily it’s scheduled for Monday.

Summary of the heat that will impact the eastern U.S. next week

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

Just missed getting caught in some other tornadoes by a couple hours, too. 😕

Storm reports for south central Illinois for Fathers Day

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

I was in Florida and missed the big severe weather outbreak a few days ago, but I was able to drive through two of the tornado tracks on the way home.

Map of tornado tracks near Effingjam and Mattoon, IL

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 18/06/2026

Nothing says summertime than a year-round Christmas store.

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 04/06/2026

Not the best time to be without A/C, considering I start midnight shifts tonight and have to sleep during the day. The omega block pattern did a decent job keeping things somewhat comfortable the last several days.

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 04/05/2026

First dust storm warning of my career is in the books ✅

Graphic of a dust storm warning in central Illinois

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 28/04/2026

Mammatus clouds at sunset in central Illinois

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 22/04/2026

Good thing the weather has been quiet the last few days. This has taken up a lot of my time at work.

Results of four days of tornado analysis in central Illinois, revealing 25 tornado tracks from the April 17 severe weather event

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 18/04/2026

I may have been a little busy at work last night.

Map of severe weather reports in central Illinois on Friday

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Reposted by Chris Geelhart

Wisc-Satellite @wisc-satellite.bsky.social · 11/04/2026

.@noaa.gov #GOESWest (GOES-18) #GLM data captured the bright signature of the #NASA #ArtemisII #Orion capsule as it re-entered the Earth's atmosphere over the East Pacific Ocean.

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 02/04/2026

This thought did cross my mind, while watching the launch with my kids.

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 13/03/2026

My sympathies for whoever has to do damage surveys on Monday, with temperatures in the 20s.

Sunday severe weather outlook, centered over the middle of Illinois

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Reposted by Chris Geelhart

Steve Nesbitt @70dbz.bsky.social · 11/03/2026

Hail 5, to possibly 6 inches reported near Kankakee, Illinois, midway between Chicago and Champaign-Urbana. If verified, would set the state record. (on March 10 no less)

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 11/03/2026

After a long evening at work, I was hoping to be able to sleep instead of still watching the radar.

Split radar image, reflectivity and storm relative velocity, from the Lincoln IL radar showing a possible tornado

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 07/03/2026

I’ve seen this more often with social media posts vs. direct phone calls, but have run into this on occasion.

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 06/03/2026

Doesn’t seem that breezy outside right now.

Current conditions at Bloomington IL, showing a southeast wind at 130 mph

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 01/03/2026

For an area in extreme drought, being highlighted in the excessive rainfall outlooks is a rare occurrence.

Excessive Rainfall Outlook for March 4th

Excessive Rainfall Outlook for March 5th

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Reposted by Chris Geelhart

National Weather Service @nws.noaa.gov · 27/02/2026

The NWS Storm Prediction Center's severe weather outlooks will be changing slightly next week. Meteorologists Evan Bentley and Liz Leitman, our experts at SPC, provide an update about the new conditional intensity outlook.

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 25/02/2026

I have a little skepticism about Des Moines having normal highs in the 70s in February.

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Reposted by Chris Geelhart

WARM Program at UIUC @warm-isws.bsky.social · 13/02/2026

Most of IL is in drought. Tell us how this is impacting you by submitting a Condition Monitoring Observer Report at droughtimpacts.unl.edu/Tools/Condit.... The reports are used by the US Drought Monitor and @ilclimatologist.bsky.social to better understand what is happening around the state #ilwx

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 13/02/2026

Normally I don’t wait this long to get my outdoor Christmas decorations down, but a two-week work trip followed by extra cold weather worked against me.

Observation details: Sunny and 54 degrees, wind south at 16 mph

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 06/02/2026

Felt awkward reading this while flushing my water line due to a local water main break.

News headline: Bloomington increases water conservation request as drought persists

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 05/01/2026

My work home away from home for the next 10 days. I am filling in at our Regional Operations Center in Kansas City. No forecast duties, as I will be an “Emergency Response Specialist.” First time I’ve worked outside of an Illinois NWS office since 1993.

Picture of NOAA facility in Kansas City containing the NWS Central Region HQ, NWS Training Center, and Aviation Weather Center.

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 22/12/2025

Sunrise at the end of my midnight shift.

Picture of Doppler radar with red/purple shaded clouds overhead

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 28/11/2025

The only up sides to this amount of snow are 1) I am off work tomorrow, and 2) I have kids old enough to help shovel.

Central Illinois snowfall forecast, with a large area of 6+ inches expected over the north half of Illinois

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Reposted by Chris Geelhart

National Weather Service @nws.noaa.gov · 25/11/2025

Following the ongoing winter storm across the Upper Midwest, another storm system is forecast to impact parts of the Midwest and Great Lakes with wintry weather this weekend. Keep an eye on the forecast and check weather.gov for more information. ❄️

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 23/11/2025

I used to be scared of thunderstorms, and my mom suggested getting a book on them from the library. She felt if I knew more about them, I wouldn’t be as scared of them. Earliest weather memory I have is of a severe thunderstorm in Milwaukee when I was about 5, which produced a funnel cloud nearby.

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 12/11/2025

How it started / how it’s going. First photo at 11 pm, the other at 4:20 am. One of the few benefits of the midnight shift.

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Reposted by Chris Geelhart

Pat Hyland @hylandwx.bsky.social · 28/10/2025

The Copernicus Sentinel-2 polar-orbiting satellite made an extremely fortuitous pass over Hurricane Melissa right before it made landfall in Jamaica to provide these stunning images of one of the most powerful Atlantic hurricanes in history

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Reposted by Chris Geelhart

Wisc-Satellite @wisc-satellite.bsky.social · 28/10/2025

According to NHC, #Melissa made landfall along the SW coast of Jamaica at 1700 UTC.

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Reposted by Chris Geelhart

Wisc-Satellite @wisc-satellite.bsky.social · 28/10/2025

1-minute #GOES19/#GOESEast Visible and Infrared images with plots of GLM Flash Points showed prolific lightning activity within the inner eyewall of Category 5 Hurricane #Melissa as it approaches the SW coast of Jamaica. Low-altitude mesovortices persist within the eye.

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Reposted by Chris Geelhart

Brian McNoldy @bmcnoldy.bsky.social · 28/10/2025

With a central pressure down to 896mb as of 9am EDT, #Melissa has joined the elite sub-900mb group of Atlantic hurricanes... it is now one of just seven: Wilma 2005: 882mb Gilbert 1988: 888mb Labor Day 1935: 892mb Rita 2005: 895mb Milton 2024: 895mb Melissa 2025: 896mb Allen 1980: 899mb

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 14/10/2025

My children have not seen me watch a lot of baseball, so 4 days in a row of games is making them nervous. At least they’re not fighting for the TV. 🙂 Go Brewers!

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 20/08/2025

Today’s harvest from the garden. Lots of fresh sauces in the future, and blackberry cobbler is currently in the oven.

Photo of tomatoes and blackberries from my garden

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 15/08/2025

Lincoln IL weather balloon was still visible at an altitude of 24,000 feet this evening. Low sun angle and light winds aloft helping out.

View of balloon at 6:30 pm, using a light pole for reference

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 13/08/2025

I lived in Milwaukee when they opened the 1987 season with a 13 game winning streak, which is the franchise record. Hope to see them break that record soon!

12 wins in a row for the Milwaukee Brewers

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Reposted by Chris Geelhart

Alan Gerard @wxmanms1.bsky.social · 06/07/2025

I have spent the last 24 hours looking at media reports and social media posts about the Texas Hill County tragedy and being appalled by the level of misinformation I am seeing. I have tried to put together an updated, more reasoned summary I hope you'll read. open.substack.com/pub/balanced...

open.substack.com

Latest on Texas Hill Country flood tragedy

Chantal makes landfall in South Carolina

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Reposted by Chris Geelhart

Chris Vagasky @coweatherman.bsky.social · 05/07/2025

Flood Watch issued yesterday at 1:18 pm. WPC had mesoscale discussions throughout the event. NWS issues Flash Flood Warning at 1:14 am. NWS issues Flash Flood Emergency at 4:03 am. NWS was on the ball. The challenge is always getting the warning the last mile and getting people to respond.

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 27/06/2025

Snagged a few crepuscular rays at work this evening, from storms in eastern Iowa 150 miles away.

Crepuscular rays as seen from the Lincoln NWS office.

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 11/06/2025

I’ve been noticing the Rivian EV plant in Normal, Illinois has been showing up on GOES-19 satellite data recently. 1st image from this morning (through the smoke layer), second from Sentinel-2 this past Sunday.

Geocolor satellite data from GOES-19 of the Bloomington/Normal IL area, with Rivian plant highlighted

Sentinel-2 satellite image of Rivian plant on June 8.

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Chris Geelhart @wxgeelhart.bsky.social · 07/06/2025

A couple people from my office have spent 2-week stints at this office to help fill gaps. Another is currently in KS helping out, with another going there next month. We also one helping out in CO in August. We’re down 5 positions, but only one vacancy is a meteorologist.

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