3rd coldest winter on record in Chicago

By Robert On March 2, 2014 · 4 Comments

Also 3rd snowiest winter on record in Chicago. And the snow and cold keep coming!

Records began in 1872.

Seasonal Climate Summary: Chicago | Rockford
PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHICAGO/ROMEOVILLE IL… MAR 1 2014
A LOOK BACK AT THE CLIMATE FOR METEOROLOGICAL WINTER 2013-2014 FOR CHICAGO AND ROCKFORD…
AT CHICAGO…THE AVERAGE HIGH TEMPERATURE FOR THE WINTER SEASON WAS 27.1 DEGREES WHICH IS 6.5 DEGREES BELOW THE 1981 TO 2010 AVERAGE. THE AVERAGE LOW TEMPERATURE WAS 10.4 DEGREES WHICH IS 8.1 DEGREES BELOW NORMAL. THE MEAN TEMPERATURE FOR THE SEASON WAS 18.8 DEGREES WHICH IS 7.6 DEGREES BELOW NORMAL.
THIS WAS THE 3RD COLDEST WINTER ON RECORD IN CHICAGO. THE COLDEST WINTER ON RECORD…1903-04…AVERAGED 18.3 DEGREES AND THE SECOND COLDEST WINTER ON RECORD…1978-79…AVERAGED 18.4 DEGREES.
A TOTAL OF 7.24 INCHES OF PRECIPITATION WAS RECORDED DURING THIS PAST WINTER…WHICH IS 1.47 INCHES ABOVE NORMAL. THERE WAS A TOTAL OF 67.4 INCHES OF SNOW RECORDED AT OHARE WHICH IS 39.3 INCHES ABOVE NORMAL…AND
THE THIRD SNOWIEST WINTER ON RECORD IN CHICAGO.
80.6 INCHES OF SNOW FELL IN 1978-79…THE SNOWIEST WINTER ON RECORD…AND 71.2 INCHES OF SNOW FELL IN 1977-78…THE SECOND SNOWIEST WINTER ON RECORD.
NEW DAILY RECORDS ESTABLISHED DURING THE WINTER MONTHS:
* 8.7 INCHES OF SNOW ON JANUARY 5TH. PREVIOUS RECORD WAS 6.2 INCHES IN 2005.
* LOWEST MINIMUM TEMPERATURE OF -16 DEGREES ON JANUARY 6TH. PREVIOUS RECORD WAS -14 DEGREES IN 1988.
* LOWEST MAXIMUM TEMPERATURE OF -2 DEGREES ON JANUARY 6TH. PREVIOUS RECORD WAS -1 DEGREE IN 1912.
* 1.16 INCHES OF RAINFALL ON FEBRUARY 20TH. PREVIOUS RECORD WAS 0.95 OF AN INCH IN 2011.
AT ROCKFORD…THE AVERAGE HIGH TEMPERATURE WAS 24.1 DEGREES WHICH IS 8.1 DEGREES BELOW NORMAL. THE AVERAGE LOW TEMPERATURE WAS 5.1 DEGREES WHICH IS 0.5 DEGREES BELOW NORMAL. THE MEAN TEMPERATURE FOR THE SEASON WAS 14.6 DEGREES WHICH IS 9.6 DEGREES BELOW NORMAL.
THIS WAS THE THIRD COLDEST WINTER ON RECORD IN ROCKFORD. THE COLDEST WINTER ON RECORD…1978-79…AVERAGED 14.1 DEGREES AND THE SECOND COLDEST WINTER ON RECORD…1977-78…AVERAGED 14.5 DEGREES.
A TOTAL OF 5.43 INCHES OF PRECIPITATION WAS RECORDED DURING THIS PAST WINTER…WHICH WAS 0.67 OF AN INCH ABOVE NORMAL. IN ADDITION…A TOTAL OF 46.5 INCHES OF SNOW WAS RECORDED WHICH IS 17.3 INCHES ABOVE NORMAL.
THIS WAS THE NINTH SNOWIEST WINTER ON RECORD IN ROCKFORD. THE SNOWIEST WINTER WAS 2007-08 WITH 65.1 INCHES OF SNOW RECORDED.
NEW DAILY RECORDS ESTABLISHED DURING THE WINTER MONTHS:
* 0.56 OF AN INCH OF RAINFALL ON DECEMBER 22ND. PREVIOUS RECORD WAS 0.53 OF AN INCH IN 1979.
* 5 INCHES OF SNOW ON DECEMBER 22ND. PREVIOUS RECORD WAS 3.4 INCHES IN 2009.
* LOWEST MINIMUM TEMPERATURE OF -18 DEGREES ON JANUARY 4TH. PREVIOUS RECORD WAS -16 DEGREES IN 1979.
* LOWEST MINIMUM TEMPERATURE OF -21 DEGREES ON FEBRUARY 11TH. PREVIOUS RECORD WAS -12 DEGREES IN 1981. THIS TIED FOR THE 27TH COLDEST TEMPERATURE EVER OBSERVED IN ROCKFORD SINCE 1906 AND IT WAS THE COLDEST TEMPERATURE IN ROCKFORD SINCE -25 DEGREES ON JANUARY 16 2009.
* LOWEST MAXIMUM TEMPERATURE OF 15 DEGREES ON FEBRUARY 27TH. PREVIOUS RECORD WAS 18 DEGREES IN 1912. THIS WAS THE COLDEST HIGH TEMPERATURE IN THE LAST WEEK OF FEBRUARY OR LATER SINCE 11 DEGREES ON MARCH 9 2003.
Links

Cold

Below Zero Stats (Mar 1)

Unusually Long Stretch of Sub-freezing Lows (Feb 18)

Snowfall Amounts

Jan 2014: Third Snowiest Month on Record for Chicago (Feb 1)

One of the Snowiest Weeks on Record to Start the New Year (Jan 5)

Frequency of Snowfall

Snowfall Nearly Every Other Day This Winter (Feb 10)

A Seven Week Period (Dec 8-Jan 26) of Near Record Frequency Snowfall (Jan 26)

Snow on the Ground

http://www.crh.noaa.gov/news/display_cmsstory.php?wfo=lot&storyid=100792&source=0
Thanks to Kenneth Lund for this link

4 Responses to 3rd coldest winter on record in Chicago

Argiris Diamantis says:

March 2, 2014 at 3:09 pm
National Weather Service, Kansas City, Missouri.
Weekend Winter Storm. Bitterly cold temperatures are expected through Tuesday. Wind chill values will run between -10 and -15 degrees with even colder readings approaching -25F by Monday morning. Wind Chills -10 to -20 during the daytime hours of Sunday. Wind Chills -15F to -30F by Monday morning.
http://www.crh.noaa.gov/Image/fxc/eax/em1/EAX-EMBriefing1.pdf
Andrew says:

March 2, 2014 at 3:23 pm
Still waiting on figures for Scottish Mountain Snow but by all accounts it appears it is going to be record breaking. Here’s some pics, check the buried chair lift pylons, also heard The roof of the hut at the top of the Cairnwell chair at Glenshee is said to be 20 feet under the surface:
http://f1.nwstatic.co.uk/forum/uploads/monthly_02_2014/post-9421-0-85684900-1392713629.jpg
http://www.winterhighland.info/pix/displayimage.php?photo_id=28148
Andrew says:

March 2, 2014 at 3:29 pm
‘Ski into summer’ plan as Highland snowsports resort breaks record
http://www.ross-shirejournal.co.uk/Sport/Other-Sport/Ski-into-summer-plan-as-Highland-snowsports-resort-breaks-record-18022014.htm
“Earlier in the week Iain Sykes, the founder of Nevis Range claimed that the resort had more snow than ever in the history of skiing there.”
Terry says:

March 4, 2014 at 12:05 am
“Another Chicago record? Winter had most days at or below zero–ever”
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/chi-chicago-winter-had-most-days-at-or-below-zero-ever-20140303,0,4279544.story