Temperatures beneath Monday's sunny skies surged to the area's highest levels in three weeks, reaching 65-degrees at O'Hare, 66-degrees at Midway and Kankakee, 67-degrees at Chicago's lakefront and 68-degrees at both Gary and Joliet. The day delivered 98 per cent of its possible sun--the most in two weeks--and the temperature surge it helped produce ended, at least for the time being, an extraordinary 21-day string of below normal temperatures--including a 45 degree high 3 days earlier on Friday. The cool spell is behind Chicago's 3rd coldest October open since 1871. The first 19 days of October averaged an eye-popping 9.6-degrees below the 139 year average as the warm-up began.
October's track record at producing 60s has been abysmal--the worst of the past 113 years. Monday's 65-degree official high at O'Hare was only the 5th this month--less than half the long-term average of 13 and well behind last year's 17 to date.
The break in the rain and wet weather has finally allowed area farmers--who are as much as three weeks behind in the autumn harvest because of inclement weather--to get out in their fields. USDA reported Monday that only 11 percent of Illinois' corn has been harvested--far below the most recent 5-year average of 68 percent. The 2009 harvest across the 18 states responsible for 94 percent of last year's corn production has reached only 17 percent versus the 46 percent recent average.
Think this fall's been wet? Last autumn had logged 15.04 inches by now
While October 2009 has been wet---2.20 inches vs. the normal of 1.63---the full autumn season which began Sept. 1 has actually produced less precipitation than normal: 3.23 inches vs. 4.90. And the 2009 tally is dwarfed by the fall tally 15.04 inches on the books by this time a year ago.
October's track record at producing 60s has been abysmal--the worst of the past 113 years. Monday's 65-degree official high at O'Hare was only the 5th this month--less than half the long-term average of 13 and well behind last year's 17 to date.
The break in the rain and wet weather has finally allowed area farmers--who are as much as three weeks behind in the autumn harvest because of inclement weather--to get out in their fields. USDA reported Monday that only 11 percent of Illinois' corn has been harvested--far below the most recent 5-year average of 68 percent. The 2009 harvest across the 18 states responsible for 94 percent of last year's corn production has reached only 17 percent versus the 46 percent recent average.
Think this fall's been wet? Last autumn had logged 15.04 inches by now
While October 2009 has been wet---2.20 inches vs. the normal of 1.63---the full autumn season which began Sept. 1 has actually produced less precipitation than normal: 3.23 inches vs. 4.90. And the 2009 tally is dwarfed by the fall tally 15.04 inches on the books by this time a year ago.
