Above average temperatures are prevalent throughout the central U.S. with some temps ranging 25-30 degrees warmer than average. there is a chance some cities could be nearing or breaking afternoon high temperature records, in the northern Midwest on Wednesday and Thursday this week.
![](https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2019/12/1224-potential-highs.jpg)
The warmth will last for the southeast through the end of the week but with it stretching into the southern parts of the Great Lakes; Illinois, Michigan, Indiana and even southern Wisconsin could near the record highs for a few cities for the date by Thursday.
![](https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2019/12/1224-potential-records.jpg)
St. Louis could be seeing record high for Christmas Day with high temperature forecast nearing 70 degrees. The warmth lingering even as cold air tries to catch up as a center of low pressure begins to develop and bring rain into the forecast. Kansas City is another which is featuring a large gap between average and the forecasted high temperature.
![](https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2019/12/1224-above-average-temps.jpg)
The cold air tries to follow behind the front but it's going to take some time for it to finally catch up which will be by early next week.
![](https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2019/12/1224-cold-air-fights-warmth.jpg)
Chicago remains warm until the rain moves in by the end of the week, but even then highs still remain above the average through the weekend - as does St. Louis, which also returns to about average for this time of year by the end of the weekend and into next week.