Illinois State Water Survey Illinois State Climatologist

New Climate Normals for Illinois

The new 1981-2010 climate normals are available for Illinois. You can find them through a station list or a Google Map on my homepage. Climate normals are 30-year averages that are updated every 10 years in the U.S. The National Climatic Data Center produces the climate normals for the US. By settling on a standard averaging […]

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Snow Climatology and Extremes for Illinois

The National Climatic Data Center has a web page that generates the snowfall climatology and extremes for any U.S. state except Hawaii (sorry). Link: http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/ussc/USSCAppController?action=map From there you can pick a state and look at state-wide numbers like who had the greatest 1-day snowfall (24 inches at Coatsburg IL on Feb. 28, 1900) or the great […]

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More on Soil Temperatures in Illinois

Here are the average dates in fall when the 4-inch soil temperature falls below 50 degrees (left panel) and below 60 degrees (right panel). Consider these as a “rule of thumb” for planning purposes. Consult the current soil temperatures, as discussed in the earlier post, for decisions on applying nitrogen in the fall.    

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Central IL tornado climatology updated

Tornado tracks, Champaign County, 1950-2009.

The NWS office in Lincoln, IL has updated their tornado climatology for central and southeastern Illinois for the period 1950-2009. During this period McLean County reported an incredible 100 tornadoes, the highest for any county in central Illinois. However, McLean County is the biggest county in this area (a bigger county means a bigger target). […]

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