Temperatures surge above freezing for the first time in 18 days Thursday afternoon. The
timing couldn't be better. This is the day each year that Chicago's normal temperatures
begin their slow seasonal climb. A month from today, normal highs will be 7 degrees milder
and the period of daylight 75 minutes longer. Weather records reveal most years have
recorded nearly half of winter's coldest readings by this date. Still, that leaves plenty of
wintry weather to go. Almost half of a typical season's snowfall occurs beyond Jan. 22
-- something verified by the fairly active pattern expected later this weekend and next
week. Not only might snow occur Sunday, more snow is possible midweek and again late next
week.
The air mass responsible for Thursday's "warm-up" smashed records in the Plains and in
the West on Wednesday. The mercury soared to 71 degrees at Denver, 80 degrees in Phoenix
and 70 in Las Vegas.
The snow cover here cuts deeply into that warmth, forcing the mildest temperatures
several thousand feet aloft. But mid- to upper 30s are a good bet this afternoon.
The next bitter blast of arctic air roars into Chicago on Friday night, promising to
make the eighth weekend of meteorological winter among the season's coldest.
--Tom Skilling, Chief Meteorologist, WGN-TV/Chicago Tribune
WGN-TV Chief Meteorologist Tom Skilling and the WGN Weather Center staff provide daily coverage of weather in the Chicago area.
