Thanks to Tracey Surface (and apologies to Carl Sandburg) for sharing these shots of fog rolling into the city off the lake near Montrose Harbor on Wednesday evening.
Photos by Tracey Surface
It's official! This spring's rainfall is now truly one for the books.
With just over a week left in the meteorological spring season, which runs from March 1 through May, the 14.29" which has fallen to-date, makes this Chicago's 2nd- wettest on record the past 142 years.
Wednesday downpours, some thundery, contribute to a number of 1.50"+ totals
Wednesday's selective downpours totaled 2.15" at Wilmette, 1.80" at Northfield, 1.73" Niles, 1.62" Glencoe and 1.33" at O'Hare. The latest round of t-storms has pushed May 2013's monthly tally to 3.61", while the spring total is 168% normal.
“Full-fetch” north/northeast winds shave temps by nearly 20-degrees Thursday; 9-day above normal streak ends as April-level chill takes over
Chicago temps take a big "hit" Thursday as brisk north/northeast winds travel into the city after a near-280 mile trip over Lake Michigan's chilly waters.
The set-up is predicted to slash readings by up to 20-degrees---compared to Wednesday's temps--- and will take readings down to the 50s (and even some upper 40s along Lake Michigan), level which equal the normal temps found in April.
The chill is to end the longest string of consecutive above normal days---9 of them--- in the 4.5 months since January.
Dear Tom,
I hear the term “tornado alley” being used frequently. What area is being referred to? Does the Chicago area have a tornado alley?
--Jacob Tonns
Dear Jacob,
“Tornado alley” is an often used but inconsistently applied term and, as the American Meteorological Society notes, “Since (tornado) statistics are variable on all-time scales, the term has little scientific value.”
This is especially true when the body of tornado data is restricted to a relatively small geographical area such as metropolitan Chicago. Conclusions drawn from such a limited database are meaningless.
Broadly speaking, U.S. tornadoes occur most frequently in the area from north-central Texas through Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska into central South Dakota. This area is loosely defined as tornado alley.
Latest radar trends shortly after 1:30pm indicate that the area of showers and thunderstorms that has brought some heavy rainfall to portions of the Chicago Metro area is lifting out of the area to the north and east. Skies are brightening and there may even be some sunshine this afternoon.
Rain exiting the Chicago area
Here are the latest rainfall totals..
O'Hare Airport 1.56 inches
West Chicago 1.29 inches
Wheeling 1.29 inches
Aurora-Sugar Grove 0.81 inches
Midway Airport 0.65 inches
Reports from WeatherBug sites
Wilmette 1.93 inches
Niles 1.67 inches
Highland Park 1.42 inches
Morton Grove 1.41 inches
Palatine 1.05 inches
Wheaton 1.00 inch
Arlington Heights 0.95 inches
Showers and thunderstorms have been moving through the Chicago Metro area overnight and this morning and are continuing this afternoon. The National Weather Service has issued an areal flood advisory this afternoon for portions of northern Cook and northeast Du Page counties until 3:30 pm for possible flooding along streams and creeks and in low-lying areas. More than an inch of rain has fallen so far and another half inch to an inch may fall this afternoon.
Heavy rain hitting portions of the Chicago Metro area
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