By Meteorologist Paul Merzlock
If the high temperature Sunday at O'Hare International Airport remains below freezing, it will be only the 12th such occurrence this winter season. Normally, Chicago experiences 42 subfreezing days in the course of the winter. So far this season, intrusions of polar air into the continental U.S. have been minor, with the core of Arctic air remaining bottled up over northwest Canada and Alaska. In Chicago, the cold spells have been brief, with the longest stretch of subfreezing days being a 4-day period from Jan. 18-21.
The current brush with wintry weather will also be brief. Mild air will once again sweep across the Midwest on Monday. South to southwest winds will send temperatures well into the 40s on Monday, with some 50-degree readings possible on Tuesday. A brief cool down is expected later in the week, but the long-term trend through February favors mild temperatures.
If the high temperature Sunday at O'Hare International Airport remains below freezing, it will be only the 12th such occurrence this winter season. Normally, Chicago experiences 42 subfreezing days in the course of the winter. So far this season, intrusions of polar air into the continental U.S. have been minor, with the core of Arctic air remaining bottled up over northwest Canada and Alaska. In Chicago, the cold spells have been brief, with the longest stretch of subfreezing days being a 4-day period from Jan. 18-21.
The current brush with wintry weather will also be brief. Mild air will once again sweep across the Midwest on Monday. South to southwest winds will send temperatures well into the 40s on Monday, with some 50-degree readings possible on Tuesday. A brief cool down is expected later in the week, but the long-term trend through February favors mild temperatures.
