November Finished Cold, Dry in Illinois

November finished both colder and drier than average for Illinois. The statewide average temperature for November 2014 in Illinois was 34.3 degrees, 8.2 degrees below average and the fourth coldest November on record. November 1976 was the coldest at 33.4 degrees.

The cold November was not confined to Illinois. November was colder than average for most states from the Rockies eastward (greens and blues in the map below). Just like the winter of 2013-14, the Midwest saw the largest departures from average. Meanwhile, warmer than average conditions prevailed in California and the Southwest.  I discussed the cold central US from January through October in 2014 and how it does not match the rest of the world here. It will be interesting to see the global results for November.

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January – November Temperature

The average temperature for January through November 2014 was 50.9 degrees, 3.5 degrees below average. It was the second coldest January-November on record and tied with 1917. The coldest January-November on record was a 50.8 degrees, which occurred in both 1904 and 1979.

Here are the temperature departures by month for 2014 for Illinois. The NWS outlook for December shows an increased chance of warmer-than-average temperatures for the month.

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Precipitation

The statewide average precipitation for November 2014 was 1.94 inches, 1.53 inches below average. The statewide average for January through November was 39.41 inches, which is 2.14 inches above average. Neither total was near a record.

Here are the monthly precipitation departures for 2014. After wetter-than-average conditions in August, September, and October, the drier November was not a concern for soil moisture or stream flows.

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Snowfall

November snowfall was interesting in that many areas in southern Illinois saw more snow than some areas in central and northern Illinois. Amounts of 2 to 5 inches were seen south of Interstate 70, while amounts were generally less than 2 inches north of Interstate 70.

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Disclaimer: These numbers and graphs are based on preliminary data and subject to change as more data arrive.

One Reply to “November Finished Cold, Dry in Illinois”

  1. Reblogged this on Angie and Martin's Side-yard Urban Farm and commented:
    The permaculture principles of “observe and interact” and “slow and small” are good ones to keep in mind as we reflect on this past year’s gardening season. For many of us, some things did better than expected and others did quite poorly. For instance, for many the tomato harvest was smaller and shorter this year. So observationally, it’s good to consider the exceptional climate year we’ve experienced. And as such, we should be slow to make significant changes based on this past year’s results, and whatever we do change should be relatively small.

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