Chicagoans don’t need to be told they’ve been contending with a cold and snowy winter, but a review of Chicago’s weather records reveals that it’s been much worse on many occasions in the past. Through Jan. 8, this winter’s average temperature of 23.9 degrees ranks it merely the 28th coldest since 1870-71 for the Dec. 1 to Jan. 8 period; the coldest average temperature for the period was 16.4 degrees in 1983-84.
Seasonal snowfall through Jan. 8 stands at 28.3 inches, making it only the eighth snowiest. The greatest seasonal amount for that period was 52.4 inches in 1951-52.
Lake snow buries Indiana
Lake-effect snows have been daily occurrences since Dec. 26 in northern Indiana. Snow totals there are impressive, even by the snowy standards of those areas. South Bend, Ind., recorded 23 inches during the first week of 2010, second only to the 27.3-inch total that fell from Jan. 1 to Jan. 7, 1999. Unofficial accumulations of 30 to 40 inches for the Dec. 26 to Jan. 7 period have been reported in areas of Indiana within 15 miles of Lake Michigan.
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Weather Report is prepared by the WGN-TV Weather Center, where Tom Skilling is chief meteorologist. His forecasts can be seen Monday through Friday on WGN News at 11 a.m., 5 p.m. and 9 p.m.
WGN-TV meteorologists Steve Kahn, Richard Koeneman and Paul Dailey plus weather producer Bill Snyder contribute to this page.
Weather updates: Search for forecasts by ZIP code and radar images at chicagotribune.com/weather or wgntv.com
