Chicago’s in the midst of uncommonly cool mid-summer weather. That’s why few air conditioners will be humming Saturday and a light jacket may feel good again Saturday night, especially in cooler locations away from the city.
Daybreak temperatures outside the city early Saturday hover within a few degrees of the 51° record low set 37 years ago in 1970. The “chill” follows Friday’s 75° high—the fourth coolest July 20 on record and a reading nearly 10 degrees below normal.
Historically, only 20 percent of meteorological summer (June through August) days have recorded highs 75° or lower at O’Hare Airport since weather observations began at the Northwest Side site in 1959.
By the end of this weekend, the Chicago area will have gone 13 consecutive days without a 90° temperature. That’s happened between July 10 and 22 only eight times in 79 years, dating back to 1928 at Midway Airport.
--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.
