Dear Tom,
After the cool and rainy summer, how do we stand on year-to-date temperatures and precipitation?
— Chris Kennedy, Palatine
Dear Chris,
Jan. 1 through Sept. 23 ranks 14th coolest and ninth wettest. That’s the result of a computer sweep of the entire 144 years of Chicago’s official temperature and precipitation databases spanning 1871 to 2014. This year’s average temperature (through Sept. 23) is 50.2 degrees; the lowest was 46.7 degrees in 1875. Total precipitation this year (through Sept. 23) is 34.78 inches; wettest was 2008, with 40.19 inches.
However, such are the peculiarities of thunderstorm rainfall that the south half of the metropolitan area received far more rain during the summer than northern portions. Midway airport reported a staggering 45.6 inches.
