FORECAST CITY
Sign in
Shaded-relief map of Northbrook, Illinois: rivers, roads, the city limits and where the water drains.
ILLINOIS · COOK COUNTY

Northbrook

34,546 people, 670 ft above sea level in Cook County.

670 ftElevation, city center
34,546People, 2024 estimate
13 sq miLand area
Sunny 45°
Sunny now Dew point 29° · NW 8 mph · high 42°
City of Northbrook River Interstate 2 miles
Explore the plate Order a print

The Northbrook 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 Northbrook

NWS forecast and National Blend of Models · updated 4:00 PM CST
RIGHT NOW Chicago-O'Hare International Airport (KORD) · 3:51 PM
Sunny
45° Sunny Feels like 41° · high of 42° near 4 PM
WindNW 8 mphno gusts
Humidity53%rising to 89% by morning
Pressure30.25 in →steady
Visibility10 mihaze-free
CloudsClear
UV index—no forecast
Dew point 29° · Dryabout the same for three days
DryComfortableStickyMuggyOppressive
NEXT RAIN
Clear
Not this weeknone in the forecast for a week
LIKELY AMOUNT—nothing expected
LAST RAINNov. 110.16 in · 3 dry days
ALERTS & OUTLOOKS
No watches or warnings for Cook County
NWS Chicago and the Storm Prediction Center · checked 4:45 PM
SUN & MOON
↑ 6:40 AM4:31 PM ↓
9 h 51 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
4p
7p
10p
1a
4a
7a
10a
1p
4p
7p
10p
1a
4a
7a
10a
1p
4p
7p
10p
1a
4a
7a
10a
1p
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
clear night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly sunny
clear day
clear day
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly sunny
clear day
clear day
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly clear night
mostly sunny
clear day
clear day
TEMPERATURE °F
42°
32°
49°
31°
50°
35°
CHANCE OF RAIN
50%
WIND, MPH
7
6
6
6
5
5
0
0
0
0
0
2
3
4
8
8
7
8
8
8
8
8
10
10
HOW IT FEELS · DEW POINT
Dry: dew points 28 to 34°

The next seven days, and how sure we are

Forecast, with the range 8 in 10 ensemble members agree on Normal, about 49° / 35°
SAT Nov. 14 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
42° 32°
0% rain — NW 7 A
SUN Nov. 15 Sunny; warmer Sunny; warmer
52° 31°
0% rain — NW 1 A
MON Nov. 16 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
53° 35°
0% rain — SW 7 A
TUE Nov. 17 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
55° 39°
0% rain — S 9 A
WED Nov. 18 Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
57° 46°
0% rain — S 14 A
THU Nov. 19 Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
61° 46°
10% rain — WSW 10 B
FRI Nov. 20 Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
61° 50°
20% rain — SSE 8 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 Northbrook about 5,000 feet above the ground was over the Gulf of Alaska three days ago, and over the northern Plains a day ago, about 2,530 miles back along its path. It came down from about 13,500 feet up, warming and drying as it sank. 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, SEVEN YEARS AGO Nov. 12, 2019

The coldest this week has been

9° on Nov. 12, 2019, the coldest reading for this week of the year since 1996. Next is 11° in 2014.

11°
9°
20142019
Source: NOAA RCC-ACIS, the Chicago Palwaukee Airport record since 1996.
MILE2
THE GROUND

What Northbrook stands on

Northbrook’s center stands about 670 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 620 ft to 710 ft, a difference of 90 ft: gently rolling country.

Under the town center the state geologic map shows Silurian System undivided (dolostone, limestone), from the Silurian, 422 to 445 million years old.

Northbrook, cut in half from northwest to southeast

A section northwest to southeast, 24 miles through the town center
600 ft700 ft NORTHBROOK670 ftHigh point of the line790 ftLong Grove770 ftBuffalo Grove690 ftWinnetka640 ftLow point570 ft ← NW · KildeerSE →

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

Silurian System undivided

Dolostone, limestone. Age: Silurian, 422 to 445 million years old. About 20 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 Northbrook’s rain goes

A raindrop that lands in Northbrook reaches the Gulf of America by way of the West Fork North Branch Chicago, the North Branch Chicago, the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, the Des Plaines, the Illinois and the Mississippi: about 1,550 river miles.

THE WAY DOWN, TO SCALE
Northbrook≈ 1,550 mi · the Gulf of America
FROM THE CENTER OF NORTHBROOK ≈ 1,550 mi to the Gulf of America West Fork North Branch Chicago → North Branch Chicago → Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal → Des Plaines → Illinois → Mississippi

Lake on the way: Peoria Lake.

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 Northbrook; river miles along the main stem, rounded.

MILE5
THE ALMANAC

Northbrook’s year

1991–2020 normals · records since 1996 · Chicago Palwaukee Airport, 4 mi west

Northbrook has a hot-summer humid continental climate. Summer afternoons average 84° in July; winter nights fall to about 19° in January. About 32 inches of rain fall in a normal year.

32°19°36°21°47°30°58°39°69°50°79°60°84°66°82°65°75°56°63°44°48°33°37°24° JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 1234 TODAY NORTHBROOK 32.3 in rain a year
Normal high to low, by month Rain by month Freezing
July, average84° / 66°high / low, the warmest month
January, average32° / 19°high / low, the coldest month
Rain a year32.3 inwettest months: June and May
Hottest on record104°FJuly 6, 2012
Coldest on record−21°FJanuary 30, 2019
Wettest day on record4.53 inJune 26, 2013
90° days a year17very few reach 100°
Nights at or below 32°122and 42 days that stay below freezing
Climate typeHot-summer humid continentalKöppen Dfa

AROUND THE RING

1Freeze seasonfrom the first fall freeze, about Oct. 22, to the last in spring, about April 23 (median dates)
2Highs below freezingJan. 5 to Feb. 2; normal highs stay below 32°
3Lows below freezingNov. 18 to March 23; normal lows fall below 32°
4Wettest stretchApril through June: 11.0 of the year’s 32.3 inches
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 Northbrook normally reaches 49° and falls to 34°. The record high is 67°, in 2025; the record low 15°, in 1996. The most rain on this date, 0.19 in, fell in 2020.

MONTH BY MONTH
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Normal high32°36°47°58°69°79°84°82°75°63°48°37°
Normal low19°21°30°39°50°60°66°65°56°44°33°24°
Rain, inches1.331.281.843.313.763.973.153.703.043.112.151.64

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1996 at Chicago Palwaukee Airport, 4 miles west. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.
MILE7
ON THE NETWORK

Around Northbrook on the Forecast Network

Neighboring plates

Chicago IL · 22 MI 22 miles south Aurora IL · 34 MI 34 miles southwest Milwaukee WI · 65 MI 65 miles north Madison WI · 105 MI 105 miles northwest Fort Wayne IN · 157 MI 157 miles southeast Indianapolis IN · 185 MI 185 miles southeast
FORECASTCITY
Map of Northbrook, Illinois. Explore the plate
ILLINOIS · COOK

Northbrook

34,546 people, 670 ft above sea level in Cook County.

670 ftElevation
34,546People
13 sq miLand
Sunny 45°
SunnyDew point 29°
1

Today in Northbrook

NEXT 15 HOURS
Now mostly sunny 42° 0%
7p mostly clear night 39° 0%
10p mostly clear night 36° 0%
1a mostly clear night 34° 0%
4a mostly clear night 32° 0%
7a clear day 32° 0%
Clear
NEXT RAINNone this week
→
Sat0%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
32
42
A
Sun0%
Sunny; warmer Sunny; warmer
31
52
A
Mon0%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
35
53
A
Tue0%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
39
55
A
Wed0%
Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
46
57
A
Thu10%
Mostly sunny Mostly sunny
46
61
B
Fri20%
Partly cloudy Partly cloudy
50
61
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

9°, the coldest this week of the year has been since 1996.

2

What Northbrook stands on

Northbrook’s center stands about 670 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 620 ft to 710 ft, a difference of 90 ft: gently rolling country.

Northbrook, northwest to southeast Northbrook670 ftHigh point790 ft ← NWSE → 24 miles through the town center; vertical exaggeration about 122×. Colors: rock at the surface.
Elevation, center670 ft
Within 3 miles620 to 710 ft
Lie of the landGently rolling (90 ft of relief)
Rock at the surfaceSilurian System undivided
Its ageSilurian, 422 to 445 million years old
5

Northbrook’s year

Northbrook has a hot-summer humid continental climate. Summer afternoons average 84° in July; winter nights fall to about 19° in January. About 32 inches of rain fall in a normal year.

JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 1234 32.3 in
July, average84° / 66° · high / low, the warmest month
January, average32° / 19° · high / low, the coldest month
Rain a year32.3 in · wettest months: June and May
Hottest on record104°F · July 6, 2012
Coldest on record−21°F · January 30, 2019
Wettest day on record4.53 in · June 26, 2013
90° days a year17 · very few reach 100°
Nights at or below 32°122 · and 42 days that stay below freezing
Climate typeHot-summer humid continental · Köppen Dfa
1Freeze season · from the first fall freeze, about Oct. 22, to the last in spring, about April 23 (median dates)
2Highs below freezing · Jan. 5 to Feb. 2; normal highs stay below 32°
3Lows below freezing · Nov. 18 to March 23; normal lows fall below 32°
4Wettest stretch · April through June: 11.0 of the year’s 32.3 inches
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 Northbrook normally reaches 49° and falls to 34°. The record high is 67°, in 2025; the record low 15°, in 1996. The most rain on this date, 0.19 in, fell in 2020.

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1996 at Chicago Palwaukee Airport, 4 miles west. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.
3

Where the rain goes

≈ 1,550 mito the Gulf of AmericaWest Fork North Branch Chicago → North Branch Chicago → Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal → Des Plaines → Illinois → Mississippi

A raindrop that lands in Northbrook reaches the Gulf of America by way of the West Fork North Branch Chicago, the North Branch Chicago, the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, the Des Plaines, the Illinois and the Mississippi: about 1,550 river miles.

Lake on the way: Peoria Lake.

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