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With a  powerful upper level trough across the Rockies and Plains edging eastward toward Illinois, its time to say goodbye to our spell of unseasonably mild early November Weather.  This trough is bringing heavy snow and blizzard conditions to the Dakotas today... and will be responsible for lowering our temperatures over the next couple of days.  

An approaching cold front will bring showers and a few thunderstorms across the area into this evening.  It will turn much cooler by tomorrow with temperatures falling into the 40s during the afternoon.  The cool and unsettled weather will continue into the weekend with a chance of rain and snow showers on Saturday and high temperatures only in the 40s.   

Here one last look at our recent spell of September like weather in November... 

Chicago

Dates	Record High/Year(s)	Normal	Actual
Nov 3rd	75 (1938, 1964, 1987)	53	73
Nov 4th	74 (1978)	53	71
Nov 5th	79 (1978)	52	71
Nov 6th	75 (1975)	52

 

Rockford

Dates	Record High/Year(s)	Normal	Actual
Nov 3rd	77 (1938)	52	74
Nov 4th	74 (1924, 1978)	52	73
Nov 5th	74 (1924, 1978)	51	72
Nov 6th	74 (1916, 1924)	51

 

Much of northern Illinois and northwest Indiana experienced daytime high temperatures of 70 degree or higher for 3 consecutive days, from Monday through Wednesday.  How unusual is this for November?  

At Chicago, the temperature  has reached 70 degrees or higher for three (or more) consecutive days only 5 times since weather records began in 1870.  Those were:

1938 - Nov 1 (75^o), Nov 2 (76^o), Nov 3 (75^o), and Nov 4 (72^o)

1953 - Nov 15 (71^o), Nov 16 (71^o), Nov 17 (72^o), Nov 18 (72^o) and Nov 19 (74^o)

1975 - Nov 5 (71^o), Nov 6 (75^o) and Nov 7th (70^o)

1978 - Nov 2 (70^o), Nov 3 (74^o), Nov 4 (74^o) and Nov 5 (79^o)

1990 - Nov 1 (73^o), Nov 2 (73^o) and Nov 3 (70^o)

At Rockford, the temperature as reached 70 degrees or higher for three (or more) consecutive days only 4 times since weather records began in 1905.  Those were:

1924 - Nov 5 (74^o), Nov 6 (74^o) and Nov 7 (70^o)

1938 - Nov 1 (74^o), Nov 2 (75^o), Nov 3 (77^o), and Nov 4 (70^o)

1953 - Nov 17 (70^o), Nov 18 (70^o), and Nov 19 (71^o)

1978 - Nov 2 (71^o), Nov 3 (75^o), Nov 4 (74^o), and Nov 5 (74^o)

The warmest temperature ever recorded in Chicago during the month of November is 81 degrees, occurring on November 1, 1950.  In Rockford, the all time high temperature for the month of November also stands at 81 degrees, which occurred there on November 1, 1933.

The latest in the year a 70 degree temperature has been recorded is November 21, 1913 for Rockford, when the temperature hit 73. In Chicago, the latest 70 degree temperature in the year was December 3rd, 1971 when the high temperature was 71 degrees.

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