January 2012 – Page 2 – Illinois State Climatologist

January 11, 2012

Illinois Site Close to State Record

The statewide average precipitation for 2011 in Illinois was 45.62 inches, 5.43 inches above normal, making it the 10th wettest year on record. The largest precipitation totals for the year came from southern Illinois. In fact, one site – Du Quoin – came close to reaching the statewide record of 74.58 inches set at New Burnside in 1950.
Here are the outstanding annual precipitation totals for 2011:

72.11 inches at Du Quoin
70.77 inches at Cairo
70.58 inches at Grand Chain Dam
69.97 inches at Carbondale
69.16 inches at Murphysboro
66.89 inches at Olney
66.41 inches at Grayville
66.18 inches at Brookport Dam
64.50 inches at Mt. Vernon
63.98 inches at Shawneetown

However, not everyone was so wet in 2011. A few sites in central and western Illinois reported 30 inches or less. These include Lake Springfield with 25.34 inches, Illinois City Dam #16 with 27.47 inches. One of the driest major cities was Springfield with 30.61 inches, reported at the airport.
We are waiting for final reports from several sites. As a result, there could be more locations added to the wettest and driest spots in Illinois in 2011.

January 9, 2012

Texas Beats Illinois in Snow Bowl

In one of the weather forums, Victor Murphy (NWS) pointed out that Midland Texas has already established a winter seasonal record for the most observed snowfall at 14.4 inches. For us non-Texans, Midland is in western Texas and almost due west of Dallas-Ft. Worth.
By comparison to that 14.4 inch total in Texas, the winter seasonal snowfall totals for cities in or around Illinois through January 9, 2012, include:

Chicago with 1.9 inches
Rockford with 1.7 inches
Peoria with 0.6 inches
Springfield with 0.1 inches
Champaign-Urbana with 2.3 inches
St. Louis MO with 2.0 inches

January 4, 2012

2011 in Illinois – Wetter and Warmer than Normal

The year 2011 will go down as being wetter and warmer than normal for Illinois. It was also a year of extreme monthly temperatures and precipitation. For example, we had the 8th wettest June on record followed by the 6th driest August on record.

Precipitation

The statewide average precipitation for 2011 in Illinois was 45.62 inches; 5.43 inches above the 1981-2010 average of 40.20 inches. It was the 10th wettest year in Illinois. It was also the wettest April, 8th wettest June, and 6th wettest November on record. On the other hand, it was the 6th driest August and 21st driest October on record.
Our statewide records go back to 1895. Here are the monthly precipitation and departures in Illinois.

Table 1. Monthly and Annual Statewide Precipitation (inches)
Month/Season	Precipitation (in)	Precipitation Departure (in)
January	1.19	-0.93
February	3.17	1.06
March	2.67	-0.31
April	7.40	3.60
May	5.18	0.56
June	6.46	2.26
July	3.77	-0.28
August	1.92	-1.68
September	3.47	0.23
October	1.81	-1.45
November	5.13	1.66
December	3.45	0.71
Annual	45.62	5.43

Temperature

The statewide average temperature for 2011 in Illinois was 53.0 °F; 0.8 °F above the 1981-2010 average of 52.2 °F. It was the 23rd warmest year on record. It was also the 4th warmest July, 7th warmest November, and 11th warmest December on record. On the other hand, it was the 17th coldest January and 10th coldest September on record.
Here are the monthly temperatures and departures for 2011.

Table 2. Monthly and Annual Statewide Temperature (°F)
Month/Season	Temperature (°F)	Temperature Departure (°F)
January	22.6	-3.7
February	30.0	-0.8
March	41.4	0.3
April	52.9	0.5
May	61.9	-0.6
June	72.8	1.0
July	79.9	4.6
August	74.8	1.3
September	63.4	-2.5
October	54.9	0.8
November	45.7	3.2
December	35.8	5.9
Annual	53.0	0.8

The numbers for December are preliminary and will be updated when the final numbers become available. However, I do not expect them to change the overall results shown here.

January 3, 2012

December in Illinois – Warm with Little Snow

Temperature

The statewide average temperature for December 2011 in Illinois was 35.7 °F, 5.9 °F above average. This ranked as the ninth warmest December on record with statewide records going back to 1895. The highest temperature for the month was 67 °F at Cairo on December 5. The lowest temperature was 0 °F at Monmouth on December 10.

Precipitation

The statewide average precipitation for December in Illinois was 3.43 inches, 0.74 inches above average or 127 percent of average. The highest precipitation total for the month was Brookport Dam (along the Ohio River) with 7.70 inches.

Snowfall

Snowfall totals for December were much below average across the state. The highest snowfall total for the month was at Stockton (far northwestern corner of Illinois) with 4.0 inches. This stands in stark contrast with December 2010 when the highest snowfall total was at Galena with 30.0 inches.