It's pretty warm in New York right now: 33°C. That's cooler than 38°C, the current official temperature in Chicago, making it the third day in a row that Chicago has gotten that hot:
July's opening 5 days the hottest in 101 years
The month is young—just 5 days old. Yet it's 30.2°C average temperature is 7.3°C above normal and makes it the warmest July open since 1911 when the period averaged 31°C.
Apparently relief is coming with temperatures predicted to fall into the mid-20s (mid-70s Fahrenheit) Sunday.
Despite being in New York, I've actually spent the morning and part of the afternoon completing a project for work. I'm done now, giving me just enough time to run an errand before tonight's Cubs game at Citi Field. Look for photos from the game tomorrow afternoon.
I'm not just complaining; heat accounts for more deaths than any other kind of weather. Yesterday the temperature hit 39°C in Chicago; today and tomorrow the forecast calls for the same.
Good thing it doesn't happen often:
The 39°C peak reading marked only the second time in 142 years an Independence Day has recorded a triple digit [Fahrenheit] temperature here.
The rarity of Chicago temperatures at that level can't be overstated. Of 51,465 daily temperatures which have been archived over the 142 years of official weather observations in Chicago, only 19 of them have reached or exceeded that level.
Yes, the 1 in 2700 chance of hitting that temperature just isn't comforting right now (9:30 am, 31°C).
So I'm leaving. Next dispatch this evening from somewhere else (though I don't expect it to be much cooler).
Yes, Azure is hot, but not like this:
Chicago's official (O'Hare) temperature has passed 38°C and may go up a degree or two more this afternoon. My apartment is up to 27.5°C, the point where the server rack starts sending me whiny emails.
And not that I called it or anything, but so far this is the hottest summer in my lifetime.
The temperature at O'Hare just hit 35°C, and it's still rising. This is the 7th day in a row of above-32°C temperatures, and it looks like we're in for another 4 more days of it—including 38°C tomorrow and 39°C Thursday.
But that isn't the main weather story of the day; the drought is:
The latest USDA Illinois Weather and Crops report was released this afternoon. The topsoil conditions were rated at 52 percent “very short” and 37 percent “short” and only 11 percent adequate. Soil moisture conditions were best in northern Illinois, and deteriorated southward. Hardest hit was southeastern Illinois with 100 percent of the topsoil and 100 percent of subsoil rated as “very short”.
Corn and soybeans—Illinois produces 18% of the country's corn and 16% of the county's soybean— make up 73% of the state's gross agricultural product, amounting to $7.2bn per year. This summer is bad, but possibly not as bad as 1988. Yet.
Yes, I just said I was taking Parker out for a walk, but I cut it short after five minutes. Here's why:
Just as we got back home the gust front hit. Trees are now moving in ways that trees probably shouldn't. This should be a lot of fun to watch.
...but Parker is sulking. Tant pis, mon bête noir.
Update, 1:25 pm: Huh. The storm just missed us, though reports have come in of 145 km/h gusts in Elmhust and Lombard, which "looks like a war zone" according to the Tribune.
The temperature in downtown Chicago edged up to 100°F (38°C) this afternoon:
At 2:23 pm the temperature at Midway Airport as measured by observer Frank Wachowski reached 37.83°C . Last summer Midway recorded triple-digits on two occasions: July 20, 37.8°C, and July 21, 38.3°C. On both of those days the city's official thermometer at O'Hare International Airport peaked at 37.2°C.
So far today O'Hare's temperature has peaked at 37.2°C but should reach 37.8°C or higher later this afternoon. The city's last official 37.8°C day was on July 24, 2005 when the mercury hit 38.9°C.
I really don't want to go outside...but I have to go home at some point. Maybe I'll do an impromptu pub crawl to and from the El...
Chicago is about to get hotter than the pit of hell:
Our predicted 39°C high Thursday would mark the first "official" triple-digit [Fahrenheit] temperature in Chicago in 7 years. (Note: 38°C readings occurred at Midway Airport twice last July—but NOT at O'Hare, the official site.) And the heat appears likely to hang on through the coming weekend and into next week—though scattered thunderstorms may bubble up in spots and afternoon breezes off Lake Michigan may temper the hottest readings on area beaches from Friday forward—though only modestly.
Monday's comfortable high of 24°C high fell 3°C below normal and was the coolest daytime high here in 12 days.
So what can anyone do knowing this kind of heat is coming? Spend as much time outside as possible before it does, of course! When's lunch?
A few months ago, when Chicago finished its 10th warmest winter (followed by its warmest spring ever), I predicted a warm summer. Actually, the state climatologist predicted a warm summer, and I repeated this prediction.
Regardless, the mechanics are simple. Warm winters and springs keep Lake Michigan warm, which means come summer the lake can't absorb as much heat on hot days. This means, all things equal, a warm spring leads to a warm summer. (Oddly, though, warm summers have no effect on winter temperatures.)
How accurate was the prediction? Well, so far, this summer is worse than 1988:
The brutally hot and often bone-dry summer of 1988, serves as a benchmark for hot summers in the Chicago area. That year produced more 32°C and 38°C temperatures than any other on the record books here—47 and 7 respectively.
By June 19, the 1988 season had logged 10 days of 32°C temperatures. The long-term average of 90s [Fahrenheit] by June 19 has been just three. That means this year has been producing 90-degree days faster than one of the most prolific heat-generating summers in the Chicago area's history.
Someday I'll have a summer house in northern Saskatchewan. For the next three months, though, I expect to be uncomfortable.
I've got a deadline, which didn't stop me reading these articles (but did stop me posting thoughts about them):
Back to the mines...
As feared, Chicago is experiencing a weekend of perfect weather. As a consequence, Parker and I just finished an hour-and-three-quarters walk that had to include time at Noethling Park (aka "Wiggly Field"). We're recovering for a moment before heading outside again for another one.
Regular updates will resume when the crisis concludes.
(Note: Ordinarily I would have linked to the Chicago Park District's official page on one of its parks, but apparently they forgot to pay the Internet bill, so at this writing their site dead-ends at Network Solutions. Nice work, guys.)