Currently in Chicago — July 4, 2024: Holiday weekend a mix of sun and storms

The weather, currently.

The scattered rain and thunderstorms will continue through Friday, then clear a bit Friday night for a beautiful summer weekend. But the Fourth will mostly be dry during the daylight hours, partly cloudy and in the upper 70s…  get outside and enjoy it! (Here’s a roundup of local events celebrating what remains of our democratic republic).

Potential thunderstorms could roll through tomorrow night, dampening the festivities. Be prepared for rain and aware of sudden severe storm warnings. Friday and Saturday will be around 80, and things will warm up to the mid-80s on Sunday, with possible showers returning Sunday night.

— Katje Sabin

What you can do, currently.

A Media Matters analysis found that last year — the hottest calendar year on record — network coverage of climate actually declined in the US. What’s worse, just 12% of reports about climate change mentioned fossil fuels as the driving cause. The media still reported on extreme weather, but stopped short of making the climate connection.

Independent climate journalism like Currently is needed more than ever. And this year, with all of these weather warnings already underway, we’ll unfortunately have plenty of opportunities to do better.