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

Galesburg

29,289 people, 770 ft above sea level in Knox County.

770 ftElevation, city center
29,289People, 2024 estimate
18 sq miLand area
Clear 37°
Clear now Dew point 29° · NW 3 mph · high 37°
City of Galesburg River Interstate 2 miles
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The Galesburg 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 Galesburg

NWS forecast and National Blend of Models · updated 5:00 PM CST
RIGHT NOW Galesburg Municipal Airport (KGBG) · 5:35 PM
Clear
37° Clear Feels like 35° · high of 37° near 5 PM
WindNW 3 mphno gusts
Humidity71%rising to 96% by morning
Pressure30.31 in →steady
Visibility10 mihaze-free
CloudsClear
UV index—no forecast
Dew point 29° · Dry38° by Tuesday: more humid
DryComfortableStickyMuggyOppressive
NEXT RAIN
Clear
Not this weeknone in the forecast for a week
LIKELY AMOUNT—nothing expected
LAST RAINNov. 60.1 in · 8 dry days
ALERTS & OUTLOOKS
No watches or warnings for Knox County
NWS Lincoln and the Storm Prediction Center · checked 5:45 PM
SUN & MOON
↑ 6:47 AM4:44 PM ↓
9 h 56 m of daylight, 2 minutes less than yesterday
Waxing crescent, 26% lit. Next full moon: Nov. 24.
AIR & POLLEN
16
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
5p
8p
11p
2a
5a
8a
11a
2p
5p
8p
11p
2a
5a
8a
11a
2p
5p
8p
11p
2a
5a
8a
11a
2p
clear night
clear night
clear night
mostly clear night
partly cloudy night
partly cloudy day
mostly sunny
clear day
clear night
clear night
mostly clear night
clear night
clear night
clear day
clear day
mostly sunny
mostly clear night
clear night
clear night
clear night
mostly clear night
mostly sunny
clear day
clear day
TEMPERATURE °F
37°
27°
48°
30°
51°
34°
CHANCE OF RAIN
50%
WIND, MPH
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
3
6
6
3
3
5
5
5
7
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9
HOW IT FEELS · DEW POINT
Dry: dew points 26 to 30° ↑ Humid air returns More humid: 36° by Tuesday

The next seven days, and how sure we are

Forecast, with the range 8 in 10 ensemble members agree on Normal, about 49° / 30°
SAT Nov. 14 Sunny Sunny
37° 25°
0% rain — WNW 0 A
SUN Nov. 15 Mostly sunny; warmer Mostly sunny; warmer
50° 27°
0% rain — N 0 A
MON Nov. 16 Sunny Sunny
53° 31°
0% rain — SSW 4 A
TUE Nov. 17 Sunny Sunny
55° 35°
0% rain — SSE 7 A
WED Nov. 18 Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
58° 45°
20% rain — S 10 B
THU Nov. 19 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
61° 44°
20% rain — WSW 2 C
FRI Nov. 20 Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
62° 50°
20% rain — SSE 7 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 Galesburg about 5,000 feet above the ground was over the open Pacific three days ago, about 2,690 miles back along its path. It came down from about 14,400 feet up, warming and drying as it sank. Near the ground the air came from the Canadian Prairies; at 10,000 feet, from British Columbia. Traced back 72 hours through NOAA’s hourly RAP analyses and the GFS beyond them, nine paths at each of three heights.

THIS WEEK IN 1964 Nov. 11, 1964

The hottest this week has been

76° on Nov. 11, 1964, the hottest reading for this week of the year since 1895. Next is 75° in 1949.

75°
76°
19491964
Source: NOAA RCC-ACIS, the Galesburg record since 1895.
MILE2
THE GROUND

What Galesburg stands on

Galesburg’s center stands about 770 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 740 ft to 800 ft, a difference of 60 ft: nearly flat ground.

The section below crosses 2 rock units mapped at the surface.

Galesburg, cut in half from southwest to northeast

A section southwest to northeast, 24 miles through the town center
600 ft700 ft800 ft GALESBURG770 ftCedar Forkabout 620 ftHigh point of the line820 ft ← SWNE →

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

Carbondale Formation

Shale, sandstone, coal. Age: Middle Pennsylvanian to Late Pennsylvanian, 304 to 315 million years old. About 18 mi of the line.

Tradewater Formation

Shale, sandstone. Age: Early Pennsylvanian to Middle Pennsylvanian, 307 to 324 million years old. About 6 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 Galesburg’s rain goes

A raindrop that lands in Galesburg reaches the Gulf of America by way of Cedar Creek, Henderson Creek and the Mississippi: about 1,450 river miles.

THE WAY DOWN, TO SCALE
Galesburg≈ 1,450 mi · the Gulf of America
FROM THE CENTER OF GALESBURG ≈ 1,450 mi to the Gulf of America Cedar Creek → Henderson Creek → Mississippi

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

MILE5
THE ALMANAC

Galesburg’s year

1991–2020 normals · records since 1895 · Galesburg

Galesburg has a hot-summer humid continental climate. Summer afternoons average 84° in July; winter nights fall to about 14° in January. A normal year brings about 26 inches of snow; with the rain, that comes to about 39 inches of water.

30°14°35°17°48°28°61°40°72°52°81°62°84°65°82°63°76°55°63°42°48°30°35°20° JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 1234 TODAY GALESBURG 39.0 in rain and snowmelt
Normal high to low, by month Record high to low, by day Rain by month Freezing
July, average84° / 65°high / low, the warmest month
January, average30° / 14°high / low, the coldest month
Rain and melted snow39.0 inwettest months: May and June
Snow a year25.9 insnowiest: January
Hottest on record112°FJuly 15, 1936
Coldest on record−28°FFebruary 13, 1905
Wettest day on record7.70 inSeptember 8, 1927
Snowiest day on record15.0 inFebruary 2, 2011
90° days a year16very few reach 100°
Nights at or below 32°129and 47 days that stay below freezing
Climate typeHot-summer humid continentalKöppen Dfa

AROUND THE RING

1Freeze seasonfrom the first fall freeze, about Oct. 17, to the last in spring, about April 17 (median dates)
2Highs below freezingDec. 25 to Feb. 8; normal highs stay below 32°
3Lows below freezingNov. 9 to March 27; normal lows fall below 32°
4Wettest stretchMay through July: 13.9 of the year’s 39.0 inches
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 Galesburg normally reaches 49° and falls to 30°. The record high is 75°, in 1971; the record low 8°, in 1940. The most rain on this date, 2.34 in, fell in 1926.

MONTH BY MONTH
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Normal high30°35°48°61°72°81°84°82°76°63°48°35°
Normal low14°17°28°40°52°62°65°63°55°42°30°20°
Rain and melt, in1.691.872.393.835.274.584.043.893.852.822.602.14
Snow, inches9.06.62.30.40.00.00.00.00.00.01.75.9
Record high68° (1950)74° (2024)86° (1986)91° (1986)96° (2018)102° (1936)112° (1936)102° (1936)100° (1899)94° (2006)79° (1950)72° (2021)
Record low−27° (2009)−28° (1905)−14° (1960)9° (1982)24° (1903)36° (1903)42° (1904)41° (1908)19° (1899)17° (2001)−6° (1898)−22° (1963)

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1895 at Galesburg, here. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.

MILE7
ON THE NETWORK

Around Galesburg on the Forecast Network

Neighboring plates

Moline IL · 37 MI 37 miles north Rock Island IL · 37 MI 37 miles north Aurora IL · 122 MI 122 miles northeast Naperville IL · 128 MI 128 miles northeast Chicago IL · 153 MI 153 miles northeast Des Moines IA · 174 MI 174 miles west
FORECASTCITY
Map of Galesburg, Illinois. Explore the plate
ILLINOIS · KNOX

Galesburg

29,289 people, 770 ft above sea level in Knox County.

770 ftElevation
29,289People
18 sq miLand
Clear 37°
ClearDew point 29°
1

Today in Galesburg

NEXT 15 HOURS
Now clear night 37° 0%
8p clear night 32° 0%
11p clear night 30° 0%
2a clear night 29° 0%
5a partly cloudy night 27° 0%
8a partly cloudy day 31° 0%
Clear
NEXT RAINNone this week
→
Sat0%
Sunny Sunny
25
37
A
Sun0%
Mostly sunny; warmer Mostly sunny; warmer
27
50
A
Mon0%
Sunny Sunny
31
53
A
Tue0%
Sunny Sunny
35
55
A
Wed20%
Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
45
58
B
Thu20%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
44
61
C
Fri20%
Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
50
62
C
Letters show how sure the forecast is: A, models agree; B, some spread; C, check back. Sample data.
THIS WEEK IN 1964 · NOV. 11, 1964

76°, the hottest this week of the year has been since 1895.

2

What Galesburg stands on

Galesburg’s center stands about 770 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 740 ft to 800 ft, a difference of 60 ft: nearly flat ground.

Galesburg, southwest to northeast Galesburg770 ftCedar Forkabout 620 ftHigh point820 ft ← SWNE → 24 miles through the town center; vertical exaggeration about 122×. Colors: rock at the surface.
Elevation, center770 ft
Within 3 miles740 to 800 ft
Lie of the landNearly flat (60 ft of relief)
5

Galesburg’s year

Galesburg has a hot-summer humid continental climate. Summer afternoons average 84° in July; winter nights fall to about 14° in January. A normal year brings about 26 inches of snow; with the rain, that comes to about 39 inches of water.

JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 1234 39.0 in
July, average84° / 65° · high / low, the warmest month
January, average30° / 14° · high / low, the coldest month
Rain and melted snow39.0 in · wettest months: May and June
Snow a year25.9 in · snowiest: January
Hottest on record112°F · July 15, 1936
Coldest on record−28°F · February 13, 1905
Wettest day on record7.70 in · September 8, 1927
Snowiest day on record15.0 in · February 2, 2011
90° days a year16 · very few reach 100°
Nights at or below 32°129 · and 47 days that stay below freezing
Climate typeHot-summer humid continental · Köppen Dfa
1Freeze season · from the first fall freeze, about Oct. 17, to the last in spring, about April 17 (median dates)
2Highs below freezing · Dec. 25 to Feb. 8; normal highs stay below 32°
3Lows below freezing · Nov. 9 to March 27; normal lows fall below 32°
4Wettest stretch · May through July: 13.9 of the year’s 39.0 inches
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 Galesburg normally reaches 49° and falls to 30°. The record high is 75°, in 1971; the record low 8°, in 1940. The most rain on this date, 2.34 in, fell in 1926.

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1895 at Galesburg, here. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.
3

Where the rain goes

≈ 1,450 mito the Gulf of AmericaCedar Creek → Henderson Creek → Mississippi

A raindrop that lands in Galesburg reaches the Gulf of America by way of Cedar Creek, Henderson Creek and the Mississippi: about 1,450 river miles.