Saturday’s 93° at O’Hare—the highest so far this July—brought the 2005 total of 90° days to 11, with 17 days at Midway. Fortunately, afternoon dew points dropped to the low 60s and upper 50s, making the heat more tolerable. Low and fluctuating dew points are often a characteristic of drought summers. Sunday should reach the mid 90s for all areas but the lakefront, while light southwest winds pump in enough low level moisture to keep dew points in the uncomfortable range.
After a muggy night, Monday starts out warm. Clouds move in from the west with the best chance of widespread rain in weeks. The caveat is drought; it’s not unusual to see a good chance of rain in computer models dissipate before reaching a drought area.
Meanwhile, major hurricane Emily crosses the Yucatan late Sunday into Monday with a steady northwest track into the Mexican mainland. There’s little chance that any hurricane moisture eventually reaches Chicago.
WGN-TV Chief Meteorologist Tom Skilling and the WGN Weather Center staff provide daily coverage of weather in the Chicago area.
