WGN Weather Center Blog

Sun's return to help temperatures to take off in coming days

2010-03-16T04:19:19Z

Temperatures across the Chicago could reach new 2010 highs later this week---a warm-up which may include 70-degrees (or a reading awfully close) Thursday and possibly Friday. It's a development which, by historical standards, is close to being on schedule. A 70 Thursday would come almost a year to the date of last year's first 70 on St. Patrick's Day (74 degrees on March 17) and only a week earlier than the March 24 average date of Chicago's first official 70 since readings began at O'Hare Field in 1959.

March sunshine plays a big role in sending temperatures higher this time of year. It arrives more than two and a half times stronger than December sunlight. Longer days and a daily trek across the sky more directly overhead are behind the strengthening.

While Monday's high stalled out at 48-degree under a heavy overcast, Tuesday's increased sunshine is to propel readings to the mid 50s---even a bit higher in warmer inland locations. Northeast winds will limit shoreline warming by delivering those areas lake-cooled air faster than the day's sunshine can warm it. From Chicago's lakefront north to Zion, Waukegan, Kenosha and Racine, that means highs may struggle to get close to 50 degrees.

Temperatures surged across the Midwest Monday in sun-drenched areas. While cloudy Chicago managed its 48-degree high, Madison Wis., where sunshine emerged during the afternoon, hit 58-degrees. Duluth Minn. and Sault Ste Marie, Mich.---saw record highs of 60 and 63-degrees respectively under mostly sunny skies

The "real warmth" is due here Thursday and Friday.

Thursday's atmospheric set-up which offers the most compelling case for warming. Not only is sunshine likely to be bountiful and will well-developed west to southwest winds will override lake cooling, but Chicago is to sit beneath the nose of powerful jet stream winds. It's a region of the atmosphere in which air sinks, compresses and warms on a large scale. This setup has been known to boost surface temperatures.

Record rains drench Boston a second day; March tallies there top 10 inches

The latest storm to lash sections of the Northeast has produced some extraordinary rainfalls since Friday, whipping the area with hurricane-force gusts. The system comes just two weeks after the region was pummeled by a gargantuan snowstorm. Monday saw another 2.86 inches of rain fall at the American Meteorological Society's headquarters in Boston, Massachusetts. The WeatherBug site there has tallied 10.90 inches since March began---more than six times the historical average.

Cold air's on the move this weekend; storm potential being monitored

A warm-up, including temperatures close to 70-degrees in coming days, may be only one in a series of big weather swings which lie ahead. By this weekend, a system lifting northeast from Texas and running along a sharp temperature contrast zone, is the basis for the rain being predicted here Saturday. The system increases prospects colder air could sweep in to the area Sunday and could change precipitation in portions of the Midwest to snow.

Temperatures headed for 2010 highs Thursday/Friday, could flirt with 70°

2010-03-16T03:35:28Z

St. Patrick's Day snowstorm of 1965 in Chicago

2010-03-16T03:19:02Z

Dear Tom,
It was snowing when my son was born March 17, 1965. How much snow actually fell that day?
Sharon Fabier, Lindenhurst
Dear Sharon,
You son was born during the 1965 St. Patrick's Day snowstorm that brought up to a foot of snow to north portions of the Chicago area, with the heaviest amounts in a band from Palatine to Deerfield. Snowfall from that storm was quite variable across the region. In the south suburbs, there was little if any snow but heavy rainfall produced widespread flooding. In the city, snow totals ranged from a little less than 4 inches officially at Midway Airport to around 7 inches at O'Hare International Airport. It was also quite windy with gusts to 52 mph at Midway and 44 mph at Joliet. The storm knocked out power to thousands, a result of the heavy wet snow and gusty winds

Wether Term: Observational day

2010-03-16T03:12:41Z

I've got sunshine on a cloudy day-finally!

2010-03-16T01:25:21Z

Thanks go out to J. Kleeman of Mt. Prospect for this shot taken late in the afternoon when the sun finally broke through the day's persistent overcast.

Photo by J. Kleeman

Proof positive of snow on the ground in 50 states

2010-03-15T23:23:23Z

Back in February after a major snowstorm in the South that produced a snow cover in northern Florida there was a bit of a controversy of whether snow was on the ground in portions of all 50 states. The wildcard was of course Hawaii, a state that does get snow in the high elevations on Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea but it does not last for an extended time. The original verdict was that there was no snow in Hawaii so there was snow cover in 49 out of the 50 states, still a significant statistic. However later information showed there were small patches of lingering snowfall near the Keck and Subaru observatories on summit of Mauna Kea on the Big Island.

Thanks to Righ Pregmon of Crest Hill for passing along this photo proving the remnants of snow on the Big Island.

Photo by Rich Pregmon

Another powerhouse storm slams the Northeast

2010-03-15T15:08:19Z

High winds and flooding have left portions of the Northeastern United States looking like a disaster area. In fact a State of Emergency has been declared in New Jersey.

For more on the storm, including photos, follow the link below to the WGN Severe Weather Blog.

http://weblogs.wgntv.com/chicago-weather/severe-weather/

Photo courtesy of Tribune affiliate WPIX in New York

Week ahead could bring city both 60s and snow

2010-03-15T03:16:09Z

Chicago's March weather is known for its volatility and rapid temperature changes. Its temperature extremes span 100 degrees, the greatest of any month -- ranging from an all-time 88-degree high on March 29, 1986, to a low of minus 12 on March 4, 1873. The early part of the upcoming week will feature seasonably mild weather with highs reaching the lower 50s away from Lake Michigan, but persistent north to northeast winds will keep a prevailing chill in the city and lakeside areas where temperatures will remain in the 40s. A surge of warmer air will sweep readings into the 60s by Thursday and Friday ahead of a potent spring storm expected to spread showers and thunderstorms into the area by early Saturday.

Snowless March in peril

So far this March has been one of the few to reach the "ides" without at least an official trace of snow on the books -- and with mild weather through the week no snow is expected at least through Saturday. A sharp influx of cold air Saturday night and Sunday interacting with low pressure moving north through Indiana could not only bring Chicago its first flakes of the month, but also some accumulating snow if current forecasts play out.

Weekend storm brings threat of severe weather and snow to Illinois

2010-03-15T03:14:16Z

Closest distance between U.S. temperature extremes

2010-03-15T02:37:42Z

Dear Tom,
The nation's lowest and highest temperatures on March 7 were in Angel Fire, N.M., and Fort Stockton, Texas--only 422 miles apart. Historically, what is the shortest distance between the daily national high and low temperature locales?
Dave Mesich, Streamwood

Dear Dave,
Because temperatures usually decline by 5.4 degrees for every 1,000 feet of vertical ascent, elevation is the key to an answer. Locations near to each other but at greatly different elevations are the likely candidates.

Steven Dutch, Professor of Geology at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, has painstakingly documented the nation's daily temperature extremes since 1995. His results indicate that Truckee (elevation 5,840 feet) and Death Valley (190 feet below sea level), both in California and 264 miles apart, occasionally register the nation's lowest and highest temperatures, respectively, on the same day.

Weather Person: Aristotle

2010-03-15T02:34:47Z

1000 mile storm soaks Chicago, wallops Northeast

2010-03-14T02:23:39Z

Chicagoans endured a windy, wet and raw Saturday that put a damper on the city's early St. Patrick's Day celebrations. With temperatures hovering in the 40s and northeast winds gusting to nearly 40 mph, wind-driven rains officially totaled nearly 0.60 inches at O'Hare International Airport, but topped 1 inch in the harder hit south suburban areas. Sunday promises to be drier with just some sprinkles or passing light showers, but persistent clouds and northeast winds will continue the chill.

Chicago's weather was tame compared to the pounding out East. Areas from West Virginia and Pennsylvania to Connecticut were on the eastern flank of the same storm that brought Chicago its inclement weather Saturday. High winds and heavy rain produced flooding, downed trees and knocked out power to hundreds of thousands of residents while disrupting air and rail travel. Winds gusted as high as 64 mph in New York City while more than two inches of rain soaked Newark, New Jersey (2.16 inches) and Philadelphia (2.30 inches). The storm battered the same areas that were hit with a massive 2-3 foot snowstorm just two weeks ago.

Marching backwards: Two Marches that started mild, ended wintry

2010-03-14T02:20:05Z

Chicago flood of August 1987

2010-03-14T02:15:47Z

Dear Tom,
I remember a big flood in the city in August 1987. Was the flooding caused by a series of strong thunderstorms or a frontal passage?
Robert Skurski, Chicago

Dear Robert,
That flood, one of the worst to ever hit the city, was caused by waves of moisture-laden thunderstorms that "trained" over areas from Rockford to Chicago's North Side for about 17 hours on Aug. 13-14, 1987. When the storms abated, 9.35 inches of rain had inundated the area near O'Hare International Airport, turning it into an inaccessible island for nearly 24 hours. The brunt of the storm targeted the north and west parts of the metropolitan area, causing three fatalities and damage in excess of $220 million. Wet weather continued to plague the city after the flood and August 1987 eventually tallied 17.10 inches of rain, making it the city's wettest month on record.

Colorful birds on a wire

2010-03-13T21:44:51Z

Thanks to Laura Bradley for this picture she took in Homer Glen showing birds on a wire with a rainbow in the background.

Phoito by Laura Bradley