Sharp Contrast Between Chicago and Portland Temperatures This Summer

As impressive as this cool summer has been in Illinois, the experience here and across the Midwest stands in stark contrast to the West Coast. Here is the temperature contrast from the last full month – July (map below – click to enlarge). While the Corn Belt was 3 to 6 degrees below average in July, the West Coast and parts of the Rockies have been running 3 to 6 degrees, or more, above average.

The contrast between Chicago and Portland (OR), two of my favorite cities, show how different things have been. For July, the average high in Chicago was 79.8 degrees and the average low was 60.9 degrees. The average monthly temperature of 70.4 degrees meant that Chicago was 3.6 degrees below average.

On the other hand, the average high for July in Portland was 83.8 degrees and the average low was 59.8 degrees. As a result, their average monthly temperature of 71.8 degrees meant that Portland was 2.6 degrees above average.

Furthermore, while Chicago barely reached 90 degrees on one day in July, Portland reached or exceeded 90 degrees 7 days in July, including a reading of 99 on July 1.

The long-term average temperature for July in Chicago is 74 degrees and in Portland is 69 degrees.

It is no surprise that the NWS forecasts indicate that the heat will remain in the West for the next two weeks. However, it looks like Illinois has a good chance of seeing above-average temperatures for a change in the August 16-24 period.

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