After several days of pleasant temperatures, comfortable humidity and sparklingly clear air, summer weather more typical of July will characterize Chicago weather this week. That means heat, humidity and haze by day and noticeably higher nighttime temperatures as well.
The mercury will fluctuate through the 80s on most days through midweek, but readings push close to 90º on Thursday and then into the 90s on Friday and Saturday. A 90° high on Friday, should it occur, would mark only the sixth 90º-plus day this year.
In nine other cool-starting summers with only five days in the 90s through July 8 (Midway data), the remainder of those summers went on to produce an average of 14 more days at or above 90º, and therefore a full-year average of 19 days with 90º-plus temperatures—a value significantly lower than the long-term average of 24 days.
--By Richard Koeneman, WGN-TV Weather Center Meteorologist
WGN-TV Chief Meteorologist Tom Skilling and the WGN Weather Center staff provide daily coverage of weather in the Chicago area.
