The third cold surge of the past week -- the weakest among them -- is in control as
Tuesday dawns. The day is predicted to become the 11th in a string of consecutive
below-normal days. The latest surge's arrival Monday produced a period of early
morning snow over sections of the Chicago area with only brief accumulations on
grassy surfaces mainly north and west of the city. The day's above-freezing
temperatures melted it quickly. Weather records since 2000 indicate Dec. 5 has been
the average date on which an inch of snow has accumulated without melting right
away.
Chicago's meteorological autumn has averaged 54.0 degrees -- 3.3-degrees cooler
than the same a period a year ago. It has increased the need for home heating an
estimated 20 percent.
MONTH ON TRACK TO BECOME ONE OF THE FEW NOVEMBERS WITHOUT A
LAST-HALF 50+-DEGREE HIGH
Since 1928, an average of five 50-degree or warmer days have occurred in the last half
of November. However, November 2008 is likely to become just the 6th November in
the past 8 decades to fail to see at least one 50-degree or higher day.
--Tom Skilling, Chief Meteorologist, WGN-TV/Chicago Tribune
