Wow--what a July open! It feels more like May! Wednesday continues on track to become the coolest July 1 since the 65-degree high in 1930. The official high at O'Hare since midnight Wednesday as of this posting has been 65-degrees--the "normal" July 1 high here is 82. All this means we're experiencing May-level temperatures in early July--it's quite unusual. As of 1pm, the reading at O'hare has acutally slipped from 60s back to 59-degrees. (We won't set a record--but it will be close. The lowest July 1 max temperature on record was a 61-degree reading in 1924). Weather Bug sensors indicate the following 1pm readings across the sections of the Chicago area: 55 at the Cubby Bear in Wrigleyville--also at Highland Park and Wilmette, 56 at the Latin School on Chicago's South Side and at Lincolnwood and 57 at Niles and Kenosha.
Crazies like me actually like this--I prefer my summer heat in bursts, not prolonged assaults. But, that's just me. I know many of you who prefer your summer weather hot are quite disappointed by this temperature downturn. Well, take heart. In 1930--the last time July 1 was this cool---the month of July went on to produce 12 daily highs over 90-degrees--three of them above 100! And the heat hit inside of a week of the month's cool open. Also, a set of medium range computer forecast models--including the National Weather Service's GFS model (which is run out to 384 hours four times a day) and the European Center's ECM Ensemble model, continue indicating a big dome of hot air is to puff up across the nation's mid-section next week--probably mid and late week. The jet stream retreats north in this scenario. But the scenario does open the possibility of re-establishing a "ring of fire" type pattern in which clusters of thunderstorms flare at the periphery of the hot air, running from the Rockies into the northern Plains and possibly affecting the central and northern Midwest. If true, cooler outflow boundaries could have an effect on the northward extent of the hot air. But the building depth of the hot air mass is significant and should comfort those who prefer hotter weather than today's that summer's heat is far from history.
