The string of above freezing hours ended at 106 hours when the temperature at O’Hare dipped to 32° at 9:00 p.m. Monday. Nonetheless, the ongoing mild trend continues, with today’s high expected to reach into the mid 40s, nearly 15° above normal and perhaps the warmest of the month. The high for this month stands at 44° recorded on the Dec. 23.—on the cool side since 84% of all previous Decembers have reported at least one 50° reading.
The current spate of cloudy days lingers until at least the weekend as a stubborn layer of moisture remains trapped in the lower layers of the atmosphere. In addition to the gloomy cloudiness, weak systems of Pacific origin will traverse the country, touching off light rain from time to time, and even a snow shower to close out the year on Saturday.
WGN-TV Chief Meteorologist Tom Skilling and the WGN Weather Center staff provide daily coverage of weather in the Chicago area.
