August closes 24° cooler than its 99°open
August 2006 closes far differently than it opened. Though the month has averaged 74.3°—nearly 2.5° warmer than normal—it’s closing on a cool note. Thursday’s predicted 75° high is 24° below the blistering 99° reading recorded here on Aug. 1. The sizzling temperature was part of the summer’s hottest spell of weather and led to a number of heat related deaths. In stark contrast, NE winds around the southern flank of a sprawling Canadian high, sweep off Lake Michigan Thursday. It marks the 17th day this month to feature lake winds winds. No other August in the past 73 years (since 1933) has featured as many days with east or northeast winds here.
With the current pattern locked in place beyond Labor Day (next Monday), at least 12 consecutive days of 70s seem a good bet here by mid-next week, making the pre-autumn cool spell the areas longest in 12 years.
-Tom Skilling-WGN-TV Meteorologist