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

Macon

1,133 people, 710 ft above sea level in Macon County.

710 ftElevation, city center
1,133People, 2024 estimate
1 sq miLand area
Clear 43°
Clear now Dew point 26° · NW 6 mph · high 41°
City of Macon River Interstate 2 miles
Explore the plate Order a print

The Macon 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 Macon

NWS forecast and National Blend of Models · updated 4:00 PM CST
RIGHT NOW Decatur Airport (KDEC) · 4:54 PM
Clear
43° Clear Feels like 39° · high of 41° near 5 PM
WindNW 6 mphno gusts
Humidity51%rising to 100% by morning
Pressure30.30 in →steady
Visibility10 mihaze-free
CloudsClear
UV index—no forecast
Dew point 26° · Dry38° by Tuesday: more humid
DryComfortableStickyMuggyOppressive
NEXT RAIN
Clear
Not this weeknone in the forecast for a week
LIKELY AMOUNT—nothing expected
LAST RAINNov. 120.04 in · 2 dry days
ALERTS & OUTLOOKS
No watches or warnings for Macon County
NWS Lincoln and the Storm Prediction Center · checked 5:15 PM
SUN & MOON
↑ 6:39 AM4:41 PM ↓
10 h 2 m of daylight, 2 minutes less than yesterday
Waxing crescent, 26% lit. Next full moon: Nov. 24.
AIR & POLLEN
12
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
clear night
mostly clear night
mostly sunny
mostly sunny
clear day
clear night
clear night
clear night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
clear day
clear day
clear day
clear night
clear night
clear night
clear night
mostly clear night
mostly sunny
clear day
clear day
TEMPERATURE °F
41°
26°
50°
28°
52°
31°
CHANCE OF RAIN
50%
WIND, MPH
5
0
0
0
0
0
0
3
0
0
0
0
0
0
5
0
0
3
3
3
3
5
8
8
HOW IT FEELS · DEW POINT
Dry: dew points 27 to 30° ↑ Humid air returns More humid: 35° by Tuesday

The next seven days, and how sure we are

Forecast, with the range 8 in 10 ensemble members agree on Normal, about 52° / 35°
SAT Nov. 14 Sunny Sunny
41° 24°
0% rain — NW 2 A
SUN Nov. 15 Mostly sunny; warmer Mostly sunny; warmer
53° 26°
0% rain — NNW 0 A
MON Nov. 16 Sunny Sunny
55° 29°
0% rain — SSW 2 A
TUE Nov. 17 Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
57° 32°
0% rain — SSE 7 A
WED Nov. 18 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
60° 41°
0% rain — S 12 B
THU Nov. 19 Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
64° 44°
10% rain — SW 8 B
FRI Nov. 20 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
66° 47°
10% rain — SSE 9 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 Macon about 5,000 feet above the ground was over the open Pacific three days ago, and over the central Plains a day ago, about 2,890 miles back along its path. It came down from about 14,300 feet up, warming and drying as it sank. Near the ground the air came from British Columbia; at 10,000 feet, from the northern Plains. It feels dry all the same. 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 2009 Nov. 16–17, 2009

The wettest two days this week has seen

3.66 inches of rain fell in two days, the most for this week of the year since records began in 1893. The next wettest, 3.04 inches, fell in 1964.

3.04″
3.66″
19642009
Source: NOAA RCC-ACIS, the Decatur Wtp record since 1893.
MILE2
THE GROUND

What Macon stands on

Macon’s center stands about 710 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 630 ft to 730 ft, a difference of 100 ft: gently rolling country.

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.

Macon, cut in half from northwest to southeast

A section northwest to southeast, 24 miles through the town center
600 ft700 ft MACON710 ftSangamon Riverabout 590 ft ← NW · NianticSE →

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 11 mi of the line.

Mattoon Formation

Shale. Age: Late Pennsylvanian, 304 to 307 million years old. About 7 mi of the line.

Shelburn-Patoka Formations undivided

Shale, limestone. Age: Late Pennsylvanian, 304 to 307 million years old. About 7 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 Macon’s rain goes

A raindrop that lands in Macon reaches the Gulf of America by way of Dry Branch, Willow Branch, Flat Branch, the South Fork Sangamon, the Sangamon, the Illinois and the Mississippi: about 1,450 river miles.

THE WAY DOWN, TO SCALE
Macon≈ 1,450 mi · the Gulf of America
FROM THE CENTER OF MACON ≈ 1,450 mi to the Gulf of America Dry Branch → Willow Branch → … → Sangamon → 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 Macon; river miles along the main stem, rounded.

MILE5
THE ALMANAC

Macon’s year

1991–2020 normals · records since 1893 · Decatur Wtp, 9 mi north-northeast

Macon has a hot-summer humid continental climate. Summer afternoons average 85° in July; winter nights fall to about 20° in January. A normal year brings about 14 inches of snow; with the rain, that comes to about 40 inches of water.

34°20°39°24°51°33°63°43°73°54°82°63°85°66°83°65°78°57°65°46°50°34°39°25° JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 123 TODAY MACON 40.4 in rain and snowmelt
Normal high to low, by month Record high to low, by day Rain by month Freezing
July, average85° / 66°high / low, the warmest month
January, average34° / 20°high / low, the coldest month
Rain and melted snow40.4 inwettest months: May and June
Snow a year13.6 insnowiest: January
Hottest on record113°FJuly 14, 1954
Coldest on record−25°FFebruary 13, 1905
Wettest day on record5.84 inSeptember 14, 2008
Snowiest day on record13.5 inMarch 19, 1906
90° days a year26very few reach 100°
Nights at or below 32°110and 29 days that stay below freezing
Climate typeHot-summer humid continentalKöppen Dfa

AROUND THE RING

1Freeze seasonfrom the first fall freeze, about Oct. 18, to the last in spring, about April 13 (median dates)
2Lows below freezingNov. 20 to March 15; normal lows fall below 32°
3Wettest stretchApril through June: 13.8 of the year’s 40.4 inches
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 Macon normally reaches 51° and falls to 35°. The record high is 77°, in 1931; the record low 8°, in 1986. The most rain on this date, 1.51 in, fell in 1957.

MONTH BY MONTH
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Normal high34°39°51°63°73°82°85°83°78°65°50°39°
Normal low20°24°33°43°54°63°66°65°57°46°34°25°
Rain and melt, in2.402.002.644.124.954.734.003.503.083.413.212.40
Snow, inches5.92.50.90.40.00.00.00.00.00.00.43.5
Record high73° (1909)76° (1972)89° (1929)94° (1894)101° (1934)105° (1954)113° (1954)106° (1983)104° (1954)96° (1953)83° (1933)72° (1970)
Record low−23° (1977)−25° (1905)−10° (1978)15° (1982)25° (1895)32° (1894)45° (2009)35° (1986)20° (1899)12° (1925)−3° (1929)−22° (1983)

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1893 at Decatur Wtp, 9 miles north-northeast. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.

MILE7
ON THE NETWORK

Around Macon on the Forecast Network

Neighboring plates

Decatur IL · 11 MI 11 miles north Springfield IL · 35 MI 35 miles west St. Louis MO · 100 MI 100 miles southwest Joliet IL · 133 MI 133 miles north Evansville IN · 143 MI 143 miles southeast Indianapolis IN · 152 MI 152 miles east
FORECASTCITY
Map of Macon, Illinois. Explore the plate
ILLINOIS · MACON

Macon

1,133 people, 710 ft above sea level in Macon County.

710 ftElevation
1,133People
1 sq miLand
Clear 43°
ClearDew point 26°
1

Today in Macon

NEXT 15 HOURS
Now clear night 41° 0%
8p clear night 33° 0%
11p clear night 29° 0%
2a clear night 27° 0%
5a mostly clear night 26° 0%
8a mostly sunny 33° 0%
Clear
NEXT RAINNone this week
→
Sat0%
Sunny Sunny
24
41
A
Sun0%
Mostly sunny; warmer Mostly sunny; warmer
26
53
A
Mon0%
Sunny Sunny
29
55
A
Tue0%
Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
32
57
A
Wed0%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
41
60
B
Thu10%
Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
44
64
B
Fri10%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
47
66
C
Letters show how sure the forecast is: A, models agree; B, some spread; C, check back. Sample data.
THIS WEEK IN 2009 · NOV. 16–17, 2009

3.66 inches in two days, the most for this week since 1893.

2

What Macon stands on

Macon’s center stands about 710 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 630 ft to 730 ft, a difference of 100 ft: gently rolling country.

Macon, northwest to southeast Macon710 ftSangamon Riverabout 590 ft ← NWSE → 24 miles through the town center; vertical exaggeration about 122×. Colors: rock at the surface.
Elevation, center710 ft
Within 3 miles630 to 730 ft
Lie of the landGently rolling (100 ft of relief)
Rock at the surfaceBond Formation
Its ageLate Pennsylvanian, 304 to 307 million years old
5

Macon’s year

Macon has a hot-summer humid continental climate. Summer afternoons average 85° in July; winter nights fall to about 20° in January. A normal year brings about 14 inches of snow; with the rain, that comes to about 40 inches of water.

JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 123 40.4 in
July, average85° / 66° · high / low, the warmest month
January, average34° / 20° · high / low, the coldest month
Rain and melted snow40.4 in · wettest months: May and June
Snow a year13.6 in · snowiest: January
Hottest on record113°F · July 14, 1954
Coldest on record−25°F · February 13, 1905
Wettest day on record5.84 in · September 14, 2008
Snowiest day on record13.5 in · March 19, 1906
90° days a year26 · very few reach 100°
Nights at or below 32°110 · and 29 days that stay below freezing
Climate typeHot-summer humid continental · Köppen Dfa
1Freeze season · from the first fall freeze, about Oct. 18, to the last in spring, about April 13 (median dates)
2Lows below freezing · Nov. 20 to March 15; normal lows fall below 32°
3Wettest stretch · April through June: 13.8 of the year’s 40.4 inches
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 Macon normally reaches 51° and falls to 35°. The record high is 77°, in 1931; the record low 8°, in 1986. The most rain on this date, 1.51 in, fell in 1957.

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1893 at Decatur Wtp, 9 miles north-northeast. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.
3

Where the rain goes

≈ 1,450 mito the Gulf of AmericaDry Branch → Willow Branch → … → Sangamon → Illinois → Mississippi

A raindrop that lands in Macon reaches the Gulf of America by way of Dry Branch, Willow Branch, Flat Branch, the South Fork Sangamon, the Sangamon, the Illinois and the Mississippi: about 1,450 river miles.

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