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

Lena

2,666 people, 960 ft above sea level in Stephenson County.

960 ftElevation, city center
2,666People, 2024 estimate
3 sq miLand area
Sunny 46°
Sunny now Dew point 29° · NNW 7 mph · high 44°
City of Lena River Interstate 2 miles
Explore the plate Order a print

The Lena 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 Lena

NWS forecast and National Blend of Models · updated 2:00 PM CST
RIGHT NOW Albertus Airport (KFEP) · 2:35 PM
Sunny
46° Sunny Feels like 42° · high of 44° near 2 PM
WindNNW 7 mphno gusts
Humidity53%falling to 55% this afternoon
Pressure30.29 in →steady
Visibility10 mihaze-free
CloudsClear
UV index—no forecast
Dew point 29° · Dryabout the same for three days
DryComfortableStickyMuggyOppressive
NEXT RAIN
Showers
Friday40% chance · showers
LIKELY AMOUNT—amounts come within 3 days
LAST RAIN—none in 31 days
ALERTS & OUTLOOKS
No watches or warnings for Stephenson County
NWS Quad Cities and the Storm Prediction Center · checked 2:46 PM
SUN & MOON
↑ 6:48 AM4:38 PM ↓
9 h 49 m of daylight, 2 minutes less than yesterday
Waxing crescent, 25% lit. Next full moon: Nov. 24.
AIR & POLLEN
11
GOODAir quality index · fine particles
Tomorrow: None, moderate. 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
2p
5p
8p
11p
2a
5a
8a
11a
2p
5p
8p
11p
2a
5a
8a
11a
2p
5p
8p
11p
2a
5a
8a
11a
clear day
clear night
clear night
mostly clear night
partly cloudy night
partly cloudy night
mostly sunny
mostly sunny
clear day
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
clear night
mostly clear night
clear day
mostly sunny
partly cloudy day
mostly clear night
clear night
clear night
clear night
mostly clear night
mostly sunny
mostly sunny
TEMPERATURE °F
44°
25°
47°
27°
50°
32°
CHANCE OF RAIN
50%
WIND, MPH
5
0
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9
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HOW IT FEELS · DEW POINT
Dry: dew points 26 to 31° ↑ Humid air returns More humid: 37° by Tuesday

The next seven days, and how sure we are

Forecast, with the range 8 in 10 ensemble members agree on Normal, about 80° / 62°
SAT Nov. 14 Sunny Sunny
44° 23°
0% rain — NW 4 A
SUN Nov. 15 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
49° 25°
0% rain — N 0 B
MON Nov. 16 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
52° 31°
0% rain — SW 6 A
TUE Nov. 17 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
55° 35°
0% rain — S 8 A
WED Nov. 18 Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
56° 44°
20% rain — S 12 B
THU Nov. 19 Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
59° 41°
20% rain — WSW 6 C
FRI Nov. 20 Chance of showers Chance of showers
60° 48°
40% rain up to 0.1″ 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 Lena about 5,000 feet above the ground was over the Canadian Prairies three days ago, and over the northern Plains a day ago, about 1,230 miles back along its path. The nine paths traced from around the city fan out, so treat that as a best guess. 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.

THIS WEEK, SEVEN YEARS AGO Nov. 12, 2019

The coldest this week has been

−3° on Nov. 12, 2019, the coldest reading for this week of the year since 1943. Next is −2° in 1959.

−2°
−3°
19592019
Source: NOAA RCC-ACIS, the Stockton 3 NNE record since 1943.
MILE2
THE GROUND

What Lena stands on

Lena’s center stands about 960 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 790 ft to 1,020 ft, a difference of 230 ft: rolling country. The highest named summit within 15 miles is Benton Mound, about 1,260 ft, 11 miles west.

Under the town center the state geologic map shows Galena Group (Trenton Limestone) (dolostone, limestone), from the Late Ordovician, 447 to 459 million years old.

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

Lena, cut in half from west to east

A section west to east, 24 miles through the town center
800 ft900 ft1,000 ft1,100 ft LENA960 ftHigh point of the line1,180 ftPecatonica Riverabout 770 ftCedarville840 ft ← WCedarville · E →

Heights every 0.1 mile from the Copernicus GLO-90 surface model; vertical exaggeration about 46×. 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

Galena Group (Trenton Limestone)

Dolostone, limestone. Age: Late Ordovician, 447 to 459 million years old. About 20 mi of the line.

Maquoketa Formation or Group

Shale, limestone. Age: Late Ordovician, 445 to 454 million years old. About 4 mi of the line.

Platteville Group

Dolostone, limestone. Age: Late Ordovician, 454 to 459 million years old. About 0.4 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 Lena’s rain goes

A raindrop that lands in Lena reaches the Gulf of America by way of Waddams Creek, the Pecatonica, the Rock River and the Mississippi: about 1,700 river miles.

THE WAY DOWN, TO SCALE
Lena≈ 1,700 mi · the Gulf of America
FROM THE CENTER OF LENA ≈ 1,700 mi to the Gulf of America Waddams Creek → Pecatonica → Rock River → Mississippi

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

MILE5
THE ALMANAC

Lena’s year

1991–2020 normals · records since 1943 · Stockton 3 NNE, 9 mi west

Lena has a warm-summer humid continental climate. Summer afternoons average 82° in July; winter nights fall to about 12° in January. A normal year brings about 36 inches of snow; with the rain, that comes to about 39 inches of water.

28°12°32°16°45°27°59°37°71°49°79°59°82°61°80°59°74°51°62°40°46°29°33°18° JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 1234 TODAY LENA 38.7 in rain and snowmelt
Normal high to low, by month Record high to low, by day Rain by month Freezing
July, average82° / 61°high / low, the warmest month
January, average28° / 12°high / low, the coldest month
Rain and melted snow38.7 inwettest months: June and July
Snow a year35.7 insnowiest: January
Hottest on record99°FJuly 6, 2012
Coldest on record−32°FJanuary 31, 2019
Wettest day on record6.84 inJuly 23, 2010
Snowiest day on record15.0 inFebruary 1, 2011
90° days a year8none reach 100°
Nights at or below 32°142and 57 days that stay below freezing
Climate typeWarm-summer humid continentalKöppen Dfb

AROUND THE RING

1Freeze seasonfrom the first fall freeze, about Oct. 6, to the last in spring, about April 28 (median dates)
2Highs below freezingDec. 17 to Feb. 16; normal highs stay below 32°
3Lows below freezingNov. 7 to April 2; normal lows fall below 32°
4Wettest stretchJune through August: 14.4 of the year’s 38.7 inches
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 Lena normally reaches 46° and falls to 30°. The record high is 70°, in 1989; the record low 7°, in 1986. The most rain on this date, 0.77 in, fell in 1980.

MONTH BY MONTH
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Normal high28°32°45°59°71°79°82°80°74°62°46°33°
Normal low12°16°27°37°49°59°61°59°51°40°29°18°
Rain and melt, in1.171.522.203.934.135.724.504.164.223.102.321.69
Snow, inches10.78.14.91.30.10.00.00.00.00.52.18.0
Record high61° (2002)73° (2024)84° (1986)91° (1986)97° (2022)99° (1988)99° (2012)99° (1988)98° (1953)89° (1953)77° (2000)69° (2021)
Record low−32° (2019)−30° (1996)−18° (1962)7° (1982)24° (1978)37° (1993)40° (1988)39° (1979)26° (1949)13° (1988)−10° (1950)−24° (1983)

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1943 at Stockton 3 NNE, 9 miles west. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.

MILE7
ON THE NETWORK

Around Lena on the Forecast Network

Neighboring plates

Freeport IL · 11 MI 11 miles southeast Rockford IL · 40 MI 40 miles east Madison WI · 53 MI 53 miles north Aurora IL · 89 MI 89 miles southeast Milwaukee WI · 105 MI 105 miles northeast Chicago IL · 116 MI 116 miles east
FORECASTCITY
Map of Lena, Illinois. Explore the plate
ILLINOIS · STEPHENSON

Lena

2,666 people, 960 ft above sea level in Stephenson County.

960 ftElevation
2,666People
3 sq miLand
Sunny 46°
SunnyDew point 29°
1

Today in Lena

NEXT 15 HOURS
Now clear day 44° 0%
5p clear night 38° 0%
8p clear night 32° 0%
11p mostly clear night 29° 0%
2a mostly clear night 27° 0%
5a partly cloudy night 25° 0%
Showers
NEXT RAINFriday · 40%
→
Sat0%
Sunny Sunny
23
44
A
Sun0%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
25
49
B
Mon0%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
31
52
A
Tue0%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
35
55
A
Wed20%
Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
44
56
B
Thu20%
Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
41
59
C
Fri40%
Chance of showers Chance of showers
48
60
C
Letters show how sure the forecast is: A, models agree; B, some spread; C, check back. Sample data.
THIS WEEK, SEVEN YEARS AGO · NOV. 12, 2019

−3°, the coldest this week of the year has been since 1943.

2

What Lena stands on

Lena’s center stands about 960 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 790 ft to 1,020 ft, a difference of 230 ft: rolling country. The highest named summit within 15 miles is Benton Mound, about 1,260 ft, 11 miles west.

Lena, west to east Lena960 ftPecatonica Riverabout 770 ft ← WE → 24 miles through the town center; vertical exaggeration about 88×. Colors: rock at the surface.
Elevation, center960 ft
Within 3 miles790 to 1,020 ft
Lie of the landRolling (230 ft of relief)
High point nearbyBenton Mound, 1,260 ft, 11 mi west
Rock at the surfaceGalena Group (Trenton Limestone)
Its ageLate Ordovician, 447 to 459 million years old
5

Lena’s year

Lena has a warm-summer humid continental climate. Summer afternoons average 82° in July; winter nights fall to about 12° in January. A normal year brings about 36 inches of snow; with the rain, that comes to about 39 inches of water.

JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 1234 38.7 in
July, average82° / 61° · high / low, the warmest month
January, average28° / 12° · high / low, the coldest month
Rain and melted snow38.7 in · wettest months: June and July
Snow a year35.7 in · snowiest: January
Hottest on record99°F · July 6, 2012
Coldest on record−32°F · January 31, 2019
Wettest day on record6.84 in · July 23, 2010
Snowiest day on record15.0 in · February 1, 2011
90° days a year8 · none reach 100°
Nights at or below 32°142 · and 57 days that stay below freezing
Climate typeWarm-summer humid continental · Köppen Dfb
1Freeze season · from the first fall freeze, about Oct. 6, to the last in spring, about April 28 (median dates)
2Highs below freezing · Dec. 17 to Feb. 16; normal highs stay below 32°
3Lows below freezing · Nov. 7 to April 2; normal lows fall below 32°
4Wettest stretch · June through August: 14.4 of the year’s 38.7 inches
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 Lena normally reaches 46° and falls to 30°. The record high is 70°, in 1989; the record low 7°, in 1986. The most rain on this date, 0.77 in, fell in 1980.

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1943 at Stockton 3 NNE, 9 miles west. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.
3

Where the rain goes

≈ 1,700 mito the Gulf of AmericaWaddams Creek → Pecatonica → Rock River → Mississippi

A raindrop that lands in Lena reaches the Gulf of America by way of Waddams Creek, the Pecatonica, the Rock River and the Mississippi: about 1,700 river miles.