2020 Calendar Year Climate Recap

Overview & Graphics

Public Information Statement
National Weather Service Chicago IL
422 PM CST Sat Jan 2 2021 /522 PM EST Sat Jan 2 2021/

...A Look Back at the Climate for the 2020 Calendar Year for Chicago
and Rockford...

Chicago Temperatures and Precipitation:

The average high temperature for Chicago in 2020 was 61.7 degrees,
which is 2.6 degrees above the 1981 to 2010 average of 59.1 degrees.
The average low temperature was 44.9 degrees, which is 4.1 degrees
above the 1981 to 2010 average of 40.8 degrees. The mean average
temperature for the year was 53.3 degrees, which is 3.4 degrees
above the 1981 to 2010 average of 49.9 degrees.

A total of 39.22 inches of precipitation was recorded during the
year, which is 2.33 inches above normal.

A total of 28.0 inches of snow was recorded during the year, which
is 8.3 inches below normal.


Here is a list of temperature and precipitation records that were
established for Chicago in 2020...

JANUARY -- No daily or monthly records set

FEBRUARY --
* Record daily maximum temperature of 52 degrees on the 2nd

MARCH --
* Record daily precipitation of 1.48 inches on the 28th

APRIL --
* Record daily snowfall of 1.7 inches on the 15th
* Record daily snowfall of 3.0 inches on the 17th

MAY --
* Record daily precipitation of 3.53 inches on the 14th
** Wettest May on record since 1871 with 9.51 inches of precipitation

JUNE --
* Record daily maximum temperature of 94 degrees on the 2nd
* Record daily precipitation of 1.55 inches on the 22nd
* Record daily precipitation of 1.55 inches on the 26th
** Tied for 6th warmest June on record since 1871 with a mean average
   temperature of 74.0 degrees

JULY --
** 4th warmest July on record since 1871 with a mean average
   temperature of 79.2 degrees

AUGUST --
* Tied record daily warmest minimum temperature of 78 degrees on
  the 27th
* Tied record daily warmest minimum temperature of 77 degrees on
  the 28th
** Tied for 6th warmest August on record since 1871 with a mean
   average temperature of 76.8 degrees
** Tied for 6th driest August on record since 1871 with 0.80 inches
   of precipitation

SEPTEMBER -- No daily or monthly records set

OCTOBER -- No daily or monthly records set

NOVEMBER --
* Tied record daily maximum temperature of 74 degrees on the 4th
* Record daily maximum temperature of 76 degrees on the 8th
* Record daily maximum temperature of 76 degrees on the 9th
* Record daily warmest minimum temperature of 63 degrees on the 9th
* Record daily maximum temperature of 75 degrees on the 10th
** 4th warmest November on record since 1871 with a mean average
   temperature of 47.4 degrees

DECEMBER -- No daily or monthly records set

SEASONAL --
* 2nd wettest spring on record since 1871 with 16.80 inches of
  precipitation
* Warmest summer on record since 1871 with a mean average temperature
  of 76.7 degrees

YEARLY --
* 5th warmest year on record since 1871 with a mean average
  temperature of 53.3 degrees

...................................................................

Rockford Temperatures and Precipitation:

The average high temperature for Rockford in 2020 was 61.2 degrees,
which is 1.9 degrees above the 1981 to 2010 average of 59.3 degrees.
The average low temperature was 41.6 degrees, which is 2.4 degrees
above the 1981 to 2010 average of 39.2 degrees. The mean average
temperature for the year was 51.4 degrees, which is 2.2 degrees
above the 1981 to 2010 average of 49.2 degrees.

A total of 34.61 inches of precipitation was recorded during the
year, which is 1.63 inches below normal.

A total of 32.2 inches of snow was recorded during the year, which
is 4.5 inches below normal.


Here is a list of temperature and precipitation records that were
established for Rockford in 2020...

JANUARY --
* Tied record daily snowfall of 3.0 inches on the 24th

FEBRUARY --
* Record daily minimum temperature of -10 degrees on the 14th

MARCH --
* Record daily precipitation of 1.28 inches on the 9th
* Record daily precipitation of 2.00 inches on the 28th
** 4th wettest March on record since 1905 with 5.01 inches of
   precipitation

APRIL --
* Record daily snowfall of 3.0 inches on the 17th

MAY -- No daily or monthly records set

JUNE --
* Record daily warmest minimum temperature of 71 degrees on the 9th
** Tied for 9th warmest June on record since 1905 with a mean
   average temperature of 73.3 degrees

JULY -- No daily or monthly records set

AUGUST --
** 4th driest August on record since 1905 with 0.57 inches of
   precipitation

SEPTEMBER --
* Record daily precipitation of 2.06 inches on the 8th
* Tied record daily coldest maximum temperature of 58 degrees on
  the 8th
* Record daily coldest maximum temperature of 58 degrees on the 9th

OCTOBER -- No daily or monthly records set

NOVEMBER --
* Record daily maximum temperature of 76 degrees on the 6th
* Tied record daily maximum temperature of 75 degrees on the 8th
* Record daily maximum temperature of 77 degrees on the 9th
* Record daily warmest minimum temperature of 61 degrees on the 9th
* Record daily maximum temperature of 74 degrees on the 10th
** 4th warmest November on record since 1905 with a mean average
   temperature of 45.6 degrees

DECEMBER --
* Record daily maximum temperature of 55 degrees on the 9th
* Tied record daily maximum temperature of 57 degrees on the 10th
* Record daily maximum temperature of 62 degrees on the 23rd

SEASONAL --
* Tied for 9th warmest winter on record since 1905 with a mean
  average temperature of 29.2 degrees
* Tied for 6th warmest summer on record since 1905 with a mean
  average temperature of 74.7 degrees

YEARLY --
* 7th warmest year on record since 1905 with a mean average
  temperature of 51.4 degrees

$$

Latest Annual Climate Report:   Chicago    |    Rockford

Public Information Statement
National Weather Service Chicago IL
503 PM CST Fri Jan 1 2021 /603 PM EST Fri Jan 1 2021/

...A Look Back at the Climate for the Month of December 2020 for
Chicago and Rockford...

At Chicago, the average high temperature was 39.3 degrees, which is
4.5 degrees above normal. The average low temperature was 26.4
degrees, which is 5.7 degrees above normal. The average temperature
for the month was 32.9 degrees, which is 5.2 degrees above normal.
During the month of December, 2.55 inches of precipitation were
recorded, which is 0.30 inches above normal. 2.8 inches of snow
fell, which is 5.4 inches below normal.

There were no daily or monthly records set for Chicago during the
month of December 2020.

At Rockford, the average high temperature was 39.7 degrees, which is
6.5 degrees above normal. The average low temperature was 23.1
degrees, which is 5.4 degrees above normal. The average temperature
for the month was 31.4 degrees, which is 6.0 degrees above normal.
During the month of December, 1.76 inches of precipitation were
recorded, which is 0.22 inches below normal. 7.4 inches of snow
fell, which is 3.9 inches below normal.

There were three daily records for Rockford during the month of
December 2020:
* Record daily high temperature of 55 degrees on the 9th.
* Record daily high temperature of 57 degrees on the 10th.
* Record daily high temperature of 62 degrees on the 23rd.

There were no monthly records set for Rockford during the month of
December 2020.

$$

Latest Monthly Climate Report:   Chicago    |    Rockford

Events

• January 10-11, 2020: Significant lakeshore flooding in Chicago; gusty winds, heavy rain and wintry mix too
• March 6, 2020: Lakeshore flooding in northwest IN and parts of Chicago
• March 28, 2020: EF-1 tornado near Oregon, IL
• April 7, 2020: Significant large hail to the size of baseballs near Rockford and in Evanston, IL
• 2019-2020 Winter: Near normal snowfall winter with no major accumulating snow or ice events
• April 28-30, 2020: Heavy rain and lakeshore flooding event
• May 14-15, 2020: Widespread flash flooding in northern IL and wind damage in Lee and DeKalb Counties
• May 17, 2020: Significant flash flood event for Chicago and its suburbs
• May 23, 2020: Severe storms produce wind damage in Joliet and a couple tornadoes including in Minooka
• June 9-10, 2020: Wind damage in Chicago area and then northwest Indiana; brief tornado near Onarga, IL
• June 26-27, 2020: Severe storms bring areas of wind damage followed by flash flooding
• July 7, 2020: Gusty afternoon storms; The science of these pulse summer storms
• July 11, 2020: Severe storms produce straight-line wind damage across portions of north and central Illinois
• July 15, 2020: Heavy rain areawide along with isolated wind damage and hail in Livingston County
• July 19, 2020: Thunderstorms bring morning wind damage and heavy rain
• August 10, 2020: Powerful derecho brings widespread severe winds and numerous tornadoes
• Summer 2020: Persistent warmth results in top ten warmest summer, including warmest on record for Chicago
• November 3-10, 2020: Record-breaking stretch of late season 70s
• November 10, 2020: Strong fall weather system produces damaging winds and two EF-0 tornadoes
• November 15, 2020: Widespread 50+ mph gusts, part of a windy 2020 autumn
• December 29-30, 2020: Snow and Ice Event

For more, see the ​NWS Chicago Science and Past Events Page