This winter is only the 17th of the past 137 on record here not to have produced a 0° temperature in the city up to this point in the season. Februarys, once prolific producers of 0° or lower overnight temperatures, produced only 21% as many 0° nights in the 1990s compared to the 1970s—28 versus 6. Only two have occurred in February since 2000. It’s a situation which is to change dramatically in coming days—a period in which five consecutive sub-zero nights appear a good bet. Chicago’s predicted temperatures the next 7 days would make Feb. 2-8 the city’s coldest such period on record here since 1871.
The chill of recent days is chipping away at this winter’s impressive temperature surplus. Since the first of the week, the season has slipped from 15th to 20th mildest as its average temperature has dropped 1°.
Ten states to Chicago’s west are being whipped by gusty winds which have prompted wind chill advisories.
--By Tom Skilling, WGN-TV Chief Meteorologist
WGN-TV Chief Meteorologist Tom Skilling and the WGN Weather Center staff provide daily coverage of weather in the Chicago area.
