Dear Tom,
What’s the largest hail that’s fallen in the Chicago area?
Matt and Alex Ciessau
Indian Head Park, Ill.
Dear Matt and Alex,
Hail occurs in the Chicago area several times each year, most often during the spring and summer peak thunderstorm season. Most of the hail is small, usually about pea size (0.25″ dia.). The National Weather Service considers penny size hail (0.75″ dia.) to be large enough to warrant the issuance of a severe thunderstorm warning. Hailstones grow largest when strong updrafts keep the stone suspended in the cold cumulonimbus cloud tops and can reach astounding sizes in the most severe storms. Tennis ball size hail (2.50″) blasted the Joliet area prior to the Plainfield tornado on August 28, 1990. Since 1950, this area’s largest hail report was grapefruit size (4″ dia.) that fell near Kankakee on June 8, 1981.
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Tom Skilling is chief meteorologist at WGN-TV. His forecasts can be seen Monday through Friday on WGN-TV News at noon and 9 p.m.
Write to: ASK TOM WHY, 2501 Bradley Pl., Chicago, IL 60618 or asktomwhy@wgntv.com (Mail volume precludes personal response.)
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