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Shaded-relief map of Anchor, Illinois: rivers, roads, the city limits and where the water drains.
ILLINOIS · MCLEAN COUNTY

Anchor

160 people, 780 ft above sea level in McLean County.

780 ftElevation, city center
160People, 2024 estimate
0 sq miLand area
Sunny 45°
Sunny now Dew point 27° · NW 8 mph · high 42°
City of Anchor River Interstate 2 miles
Explore the plate Order a print

The Anchor plate. Relief from Copernicus GLO-30; rivers and lakes from USGS NHD; watersheds from the USGS Watershed Boundary Dataset; roads and city limits from Census TIGER 2024.

MILE1
TODAY

Today in Anchor

NWS forecast and National Blend of Models · updated 3:00 PM CST
RIGHT NOW Rantoul National Aviation Center Airport (KTIP) · 3:35 PM
Sunny
45° Sunny Feels like 41° · high of 42° near 3 PM
WindNW 8 mphno gusts
Humidity48%rising to 96% by morning
Pressure30.28 in →steady
Visibility10 mihaze-free
CloudsClear
UV index—no forecast
Dew point 27° · Dry36° by Tuesday: more humid
DryComfortableStickyMuggyOppressive
NEXT RAIN
Clear
Not this weeknone in the forecast for a week
LIKELY AMOUNT—nothing expected
LAST RAIN—none in 31 days
ALERTS & OUTLOOKS
No watches or warnings for McLean County
NWS Lincoln and the Storm Prediction Center · checked 3:45 PM
SUN & MOON
↑ 6:39 AM4:37 PM ↓
9 h 58 m of daylight, 2 minutes less than yesterday
Waxing crescent, 26% lit. Next full moon: Nov. 24.
AIR & POLLEN
11
GOODAir quality index · fine particles
Tomorrow: None, good. No pollen source yet.

The next three days, hour by hour

Sky: clear, cloudy, night Rain likely National Blend of Models
SATURDAY, NOV. 14
SUNDAY, NOV. 15
MONDAY, NOV. 16
TUESDAY, NOV. 17
3p
6p
9p
Mid
3a
6a
9a
Noon
3p
6p
9p
Mid
3a
6a
9a
Noon
3p
6p
9p
Mid
3a
6a
9a
Noon
clear day
clear night
clear night
clear night
mostly clear night
mostly sunny
mostly sunny
clear day
clear day
clear night
clear night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly sunny
clear day
clear day
clear day
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly sunny
clear day
clear day
TEMPERATURE °F
42°
26°
49°
27°
50°
30°
CHANCE OF RAIN
50%
WIND, MPH
7
3
2
0
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
2
0
1
3
3
3
3
5
7
HOW IT FEELS · DEW POINT
Dry: dew points 25 to 36°

The next seven days, and how sure we are

Forecast, with the range 8 in 10 ensemble members agree on Normal, about 53° / 32°
SAT Nov. 14 Sunny Sunny
42° 26°
0% rain — NW 7 A
SUN Nov. 15 Sunny; warmer Sunny; warmer
52° 27°
0% rain — NNW 0 B
MON Nov. 16 Sunny Sunny
55° 30°
0% rain — SW 1 A
TUE Nov. 17 Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
57° 33°
0% rain — SSE 5 A
WED Nov. 18 Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
60° 41°
0% rain — S 9 A
THU Nov. 19 Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
64° 45°
10% rain — SW 6 B
FRI Nov. 20 Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
65° 47°
10% rain — SSE 6 C
How sure are we? AModels agree: highs within 4° BSome spread: within 8° CWide spread: check back
Range from the National Blend of Models percentiles · graded on Forecast Scores
AIR MAIL

Where today’s air came from

The air arriving over Anchor about 5,000 feet above the ground was over British Columbia three days ago, and over the central Plains a day ago, about 2,490 miles back along its path. It came down from about 13,300 feet up, warming and drying as it sank. Near the ground the air came from British Columbia; at 10,000 feet, from the northern Rockies. It has stayed over land, which is why it feels dry. Traced back 72 hours through NOAA’s hourly RAP analyses and the GFS beyond them, nine paths at each of three heights.

MILE2
THE GROUND

What Anchor stands on

Anchor’s center stands about 780 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 740 ft to 800 ft, a difference of 60 ft: nearly flat ground.

Under the town center the state geologic map shows Bond Formation (shale, sandstone, limestone), from the Late Pennsylvanian, 304 to 307 million years old.

The section below crosses 3 rock units mapped at the surface.

Saybrook to Fairbury, cut in half

A section south to north, 24 miles through the town center
700 ft800 ft900 ft ANCHOR780 ftSaybrook820 ftHigh point of the line920 ftIndian Creekabout 740 ftLow point690 ft ← S · SaybrookFairbury · N →

Heights every 0.1 mile from the Copernicus GLO-90 surface model; vertical exaggeration about 64×. The colored band under the surface is the rock the state geologic map shows at the surface, not a picture of what lies beneath.

Rock at the surface along the line

Bond Formation

Shale, sandstone, limestone. Age: Late Pennsylvanian, 304 to 307 million years old. About 13 mi of the line.

Mattoon Formation

Shale. Age: Late Pennsylvanian, 304 to 307 million years old. About 11 mi of the line.

Shelburn-Patoka Formations undivided

Shale, limestone. Age: Late Pennsylvanian, 304 to 307 million years old. About 0.2 mi of the line.

From the USGS State Geologic Map Compilation (Horton and others, 2017), the states’ geologic maps joined at a common scale.

Heights from Copernicus GLO-90 (a surface model: it includes buildings and tree canopy); summits from USGS GNIS; rivers from USGS NHDPlus HR; rock from the USGS State Geologic Map Compilation.

MILE3
THE WATER

Where Anchor’s rain goes

A raindrop that lands in Anchor reaches the Gulf of America by way of the Mackinaw, the Illinois and the Mississippi: about 1,450 river miles.

THE WAY DOWN, TO SCALE
Anchor≈ 1,450 mi · the Gulf of America
FROM THE CENTER OF ANCHOR ≈ 1,450 mi to the Gulf of America Mackinaw → Illinois → Mississippi

1,190 miles of the trip are on the Mississippi.

Traced down the USGS NHDPlus V2.1 river network from the Census center point of Anchor; river miles along the main stem, rounded.

MILE7
ON THE NETWORK

Around Anchor on the Forecast Network

Neighboring plates

Bloomington IL · 24 MI 24 miles west Champaign IL · 34 MI 34 miles southeast Chicago IL · 98 MI 98 miles northeast Indianapolis IN · 138 MI 138 miles southeast Madison WI · 180 MI 180 miles north Fort Wayne IN · 181 MI 181 miles east
FORECASTCITY
Map of Anchor, Illinois. Explore the plate
ILLINOIS · MCLEAN

Anchor

160 people, 780 ft above sea level in McLean County.

780 ftElevation
160People
0 sq miLand
Sunny 45°
SunnyDew point 27°
1

Today in Anchor

NEXT 15 HOURS
Now clear day 42° 0%
6p clear night 37° 0%
9p clear night 31° 0%
12a clear night 28° 0%
3a clear night 27° 0%
6a mostly clear night 26° 0%
Clear
NEXT RAINNone this week
→
Sat0%
Sunny Sunny
26
42
A
Sun0%
Sunny; warmer Sunny; warmer
27
52
B
Mon0%
Sunny Sunny
30
55
A
Tue0%
Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
33
57
A
Wed0%
Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
41
60
A
Thu10%
Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
45
64
B
Fri10%
Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
47
65
C
Letters show how sure the forecast is: A, models agree; B, some spread; C, check back. Sample data.
2

What Anchor stands on

Anchor’s center stands about 780 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 740 ft to 800 ft, a difference of 60 ft: nearly flat ground.

Anchor, south to north Anchor780 ftHigh point920 ftIndian Creekabout 740 ft ← SN → 24 miles through the town center; vertical exaggeration about 122×. Colors: rock at the surface.
Elevation, center780 ft
Within 3 miles740 to 800 ft
Lie of the landNearly flat (60 ft of relief)
Rock at the surfaceBond Formation
Its ageLate Pennsylvanian, 304 to 307 million years old
3

Where the rain goes

≈ 1,450 mito the Gulf of AmericaMackinaw → Illinois → Mississippi

A raindrop that lands in Anchor reaches the Gulf of America by way of the Mackinaw, the Illinois and the Mississippi: about 1,450 river miles.

1,190 miles of the trip are on the Mississippi.