Among the 12th Warmest on record…
The three-month season that began on June 1st ends at midnight Saturday night and currently ranks among the warmest 12% on record dating back to 1871, averaging nearly 1.5 degrees above the most recent 30-year normal.
It was another day of searing heat broke records to the east/southeast of Chicago Thursday…
Thursday high temperatures across the U.S.
![](https://wgntv.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/08/USA-to-Alaska-today-MAX-TEMPS-4.jpg?strip=1)
How far from normal??
![](https://wgntv.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/08/CENTRAL-US-MAX-TEMP-DEPARTS-4.jpg?strip=1)
Thursday’s record highs
![](https://wgntv.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/08/RECORD-HIGHS-LIST-ad-1.jpg?strip=1)
In Chicago, temperatures again flirted with or exceeded 90° Thursday afternoon away from Lake Michigan, while a lake breeze kept it cooler for areas in close proximity to Lake Michigan.
Warmest inland highs
![](https://wgntv.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/08/High-Temperatures-DMA-1.jpg?strip=1)
“Cooler by the lake” highs
![](https://wgntv.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/08/COOLER_5f3ba4.jpg?strip=1)
Chicago Almanac
![](https://wgntv.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/08/ALMANAC_TEMPLATE_a24b6a.jpg?strip=1)
It’s been a warm stretch the past week, not only locally in Chicago, but across the Midwest
Average temperatures (figures the daytime high and daytime low)
![](https://wgntv.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/08/TEMPS.jpg?strip=1)
How far from normal?
![](https://wgntv.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/08/DEPARTS.jpg?strip=1)
Chicago high temperatures the past week and how far from normal?
![](https://wgntv.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/08/ST_TEMPDEPS.jpg?strip=1)
Pattern change over the coming weekend to bring cooler, more comfortable air
Upper-level steering winds to shift northwest, and the intense dome of heat will “retrograde” or back up over the Western U.S.
Thursday upper-level pattern.
![](https://wgntv.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/08/THU-UPPER-AIR.jpg?strip=1)
Labor Day upper-level pattern forecast.
![](https://wgntv.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/08/LABOR-DAY.jpg?strip=1)
Friday begins a multi-day cooling stretch in which each day’s high temperature is lower than the previous day.
Forecast highs: How Far From Normal?
![](https://wgntv.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/08/Forecast-High-and-Departures-from-Normal-9.jpg?strip=1)
Climatological Autumn, the period September 1 through November 30, is likely to open with an overall cooler than normal temperature trend.
6–10-day temperature outlook
![](https://wgntv.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/08/6-10-Temp-Outlook-2.jpg?strip=1)
8–14-day temperature outlook
![](https://wgntv.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/08/8-14-Temp-Outlook-1.jpg?strip=1)