Send Tom your question

Ask Tom Why archives

Ask Tom why: Has Chicago ever added to its snowfall tally after recording the year's first 80-degree day?

Ask Tom why: What are the earliest dates that Chicago has seen an 80-degree temperature and a 90-degree temperature?

Ask Tom why: Which states have the most hailstorms?

Ask Tom why: What is Chicago's longest streak of 60-degree-plus high temperatures this early in March?

Ask Tom why: What is Chicago's record for the greatest number of days in winter when the high temperature was above normal?

Ask Tom why: What were the biggest snowstorms in late-starting snow seasons like this one?

Ask Tom why: When do the first 80-degree days of spring usually arrive in the Chicago area?

Ask Tom why: How much greenhouse gas does a car emit?

Ask Tom why: Is the 14 days with subfreezing highs recorded in Chicago this season close to a record?

Ask Tom why: Is there a counterpart to the northern lights in the Southern Hemisphere?

Ask Tom why: What are Chicago's temperature records for the month of December?

Ask Tom why: At what period of the year is the increase in Chicago's normal high temperature the most rapid, and in what period is the fall most rapid?

Ask Tom why: I have heard that November's weather sets the tone for the following winter. You indicated this November was the 11th warmest of all Novembers, suggesting winter should be milder. Do the records support this?

Ask Tom why: What is the difference between snow flurries and snow showers?

Ask Tom why: I worked at O'Hare International Airport from 1981-1995 and remember extremely cold weather two weekends in a row in the early 1980s. What year was that?

Ask Tom why: Was there a time in the late '70s or early '80s when the temperature never went above freezing for a very long period?

Ask Tom why: Why do we not have thunderstorms with major snowstorms during the winter?

Ask Tom why: What was Chicago's hottest summer?

Ask Tom why: What is the Arizona monsoon?

Ask Tom why: Can you provide details about a severe snowstorm that hit Chicago in December 1929?

Ask Tom why: Can we still get a subzero temperature this winter?

Ask Tom why: Does Feb. 29, leap day, have meteorological significance?

Ask Tom why: Could you tell me how this mild winter rates with others in terms of the lowest temperature reached?

Ask Tom Why

Ask Tom why: Which calendar day in Chicago has the most reports of precipitation?

Ask Tom why: When can we expect the last snow of the season?

Ask Tom why: Why is Lake Michigan's water temperature reported in the middle of winter?

Ask Tom why: What is the latest date that Chicago's temperature dropped below zero?

Ask Tom why: Can you provide details about cold and snowy Valentine's Days in Chicago?

Ask Tom why: What factors caused the "perfect storm" to form in 1991?

Ask Tom why: Why are jet exhaust condensation trails more numerous on some days than others?

Ask Tom why: Is Chicago more likely to get a measurable snowfall on Christmas or Valentine's Day?

Ask Tom why: What is the least amount of snow we've ever had in a winter?

Ask Tom why: How is snow cover determined when the ground is partially bare?

Ask Tom why: What is the year's earliest sunset time for the Chicago area?

Ask Tom why: What do you think the coming winter will be like?

Ask Tom Why

Ask Tom why: I remember the Blizzard of '79 that brought more than 20 inches of snow to Chicago and northwest Indiana. Why do people in Knox, Ind., call it the Blizzard of '78?

Ask Tom why: What indicators should I look for in order to determine if frost will form on the windshield of my car?

Ask Tom why: Is it possible to see the northern lights in the Chicago area?

Ask Tom why: Why are cooling degree days accumulated on an annual basis while heating degree days are longed from July 1-June 30?

Ask Tom why: How far from Lake Michigan does lake-effect snow typically fall?

Ask Tom why: What causes the eastern sky to be red at sunrise and the western sky to be red at sunset?

Ask Tom why: Can drizzle occur when the temperature is 51 degrees below zero?

Ask Tom why: Is this winter's puny snowfall anywhere near a record?

Ask Tom why: What will Chicago's winter be like?

Ask Tom why: What is the latest arrival of Chicago's first single-digit temperature of the season?

Ask Tom why: Can you tell me when it was 80 below zero in Chicago?

Ask Tom why: What is the record number of days with temperatures of 40 degrees or higher that have occurred in meteorological winter?

Ask Tom why: Why is the moisture content of air reported as a humidity value, expressed as a percentage, and not as the amount of water in a volume of air, such as ounces of water per cubic yard?

Ask Tom why: Why is an official snowfall 0.1 inch, but for a white Christmas there has to 1 inch or more on the ground?

Ask Tom why: Does wind chill affect the freezing of water and/or mortar used in bricklaying?

Ask Tom why: January is Chicago's coldest month, but is it always the coldest month every winter?

Ask Tom why: Why do they call it meteorology? What do meteors have to do with predicting the weather?

Ask Tom why: Is it true that there was a nearly 50-degree temperature rise in just two minutes in South Dakota?

Ask Tom why: Over a typical winter season, are there more days with snow cover or without?

Ask Tom why: Has there ever been snow in Miami?

Ask Tom why: My grandmother and mother remember huge waves on Lake Michigan that reached the second floor of a building on Argyle Street. Do you know when this occurred?

Ask Tom why: Dew points were in the upper 60s and 70s this summer when we had our hot weather. How does this compare with other past Chicago hot spells?

Ask Tom why: Why do some depictions of jet streams show them to be narrow, but other depictions show them to be wide?

Ask Tom why: What is a reasonable range for the number of times Chicago can expect a snowfall of 2 inches or greater during a winter season?

Ask Tom why: What is the city's warmest Groundhog Day?

Ask Tom why: My dad's birthday is Jan 20, and my mother and I remember that the mercury fell to 27 below zero. Did that day have Chicago's lowest mean daily temperature?

Ask Tom why: How long do water molecules live?

Ask Tom why: What are the temperature extremes for Thanksgiving, and how many times have temperatures on the holiday reached at least 60 degrees?

Ask Tom why: What have been the city's five biggest Christmas Day snowfalls?

Ask Tom why: Can you explain how the last great ice age ended without human contribution?

Ask Tom why: Why is it always so cold in Stanley, Idaho?

Ask Tom why: What is the difference between official weather records and unofficial weather records?

Ask Tom why: How does the Greenland block affect snowfall?

Ask Tom why: What are Chicago's five warmest winters and how much snow did each produce?

Ask Tom why: What is the difference between a blizzard and a ground blizzard, and a winter storm and a snowstorm?

Ask Tom why: Have we ever experienced a December with as little snowfall as this past December?

Ask Tom why: Was July 1934 one of the hottest months on record at Midway?

Ask Tom why: Is March the snowiest month in Chicago?

Ask Tom why: The blizzard of 1967 was nasty. With all the advances in meteorology since then, would Chicago still be crippled the same?

Ask Tom why: How common is it to go an entire winter without a below zero temperature?

Ask Tom why: Was the disappearance of the dinosaurs due to changing weather?

Ask Tom why: Is it true that skyscrapers in and around Chicago's Loop protect that area from tornadoes?

Ask Tom why: How often has Chicago's barometric pressure dropped below 29.00 inches?

Ask Tom why: There have been different locations where Chicago's official weather observations have been taken since 1871. How does the older equipment and record keeping compare to today?

Ask Tom why: Has Chicago ever had a winter in which no single snowfall exceeded 1 inch?

Ask Tom why: What is the earliest in the fall it has ever snowed in Chicago?

Ask Tom why: Chicago's normal daytime high has been stuck at 31 degrees for some time now. I thought it went down to 28 for the normal high at this time of year?

How soon can we expect our first 60-degree day of the season?

Ask Tom why: Which winters in the last 20 years or so had very little snow?

Ask Tom why: I remember some bitterly cold New Year's Eves in the late 1960s or early 1970s; can you refresh my memories?

Ask Tom why: With the exception of the summer of 1988, I don't remember it ever being so consistently warm overnight as this summer. What do the temperature data say?

Ask Tom why: How often has the ground been bare in Chicago on New Year's Day?

Ask Tom why: My girlfriend says there has always been snow on the ground on her birthday, Jan. 22. How accurate is that?

Ask Tom why: What is the difference between a hurricane and a typhoon?

Ask Tom why: Has there ever been a month that exceeded the snowfall total of 42 inches for December 2000?

Ask Tom why: I teach 3rd grade and a student asked the meaning of "bimulous." Could you please define it?

Ask Tom why: At the end of September I saw a massive shooting star. Do you have any records of that event?

Ask Tom why: What is high pressure?

Ask Tom why: How does the salt content of Lake Michigan water compare to that of the oceans?

Ask Tom Why

Ask Tom Why

Ask Tom why: Has Chicago ever had a December, January or February without snow?

Ask Tom why: What is a hypercane?

Ask Tom why: Where could I move to where last month's mild weather in Chicago would be the December norm?

Ask Tom why: Has Chicago ever had a winter without measurable snow?

Ask Tom why: Why does the weather on the island of Hawaii vary from a jungle on one side to a desert on the other?

Ask Tom why: What was high temperature on Christmas in 1982?

Ask Tom why: My granddaughter said she saw snow falling when it was 51 degrees outside. I know it wasn't snowing, but what is the warmest it has been and still snowed?

Ask Tom Why

Ask Tom Why

Ask Tom why: What is the best time of day to water lawns and gardens?

Ask Tom why: The high and low temperature records for Dec. 25 occurred in consecutive years, 1982 and 1983. How rare is that?

Ask Tom why: What day has the greatest, and least, likelihood of precipitation?

Ask Tom why: Is it dangerous to use a cellphone during a thunderstorm because of lightning?

Ask Tom why: Why in winter do we sometimes have a high temperature that is 30 degrees below normal, near zero, but never a summer high temperature that is 30 degrees below normal, say in the 50s in July?

Ask Tom why: What is the comparison between Hurricane Irene and New England's Great Hurricane of 1938?

Ask Tom why: What effect, if any, did the March earthquake in Japan have on worldwide weather patterns?

Ask Tom why: What is the origin of the phrase "raining cats and dogs"?

Ask Tom why: Has it ever not snowed before Christmas in the Chicago area?

Ask Tom why: How often do we see drastic temperature changes of 25 degrees or more from one day to the next in Chicago?

Ask Tom why: Has the relative humidity ever dropped to zero percent?

Ask Tom why: How do winds form?

Ask Tom why: If it is cold enough for freezing rain, why wouldn't it just snow instead?

Ask Tom why: What is the latest date for an 80-degree day in Chicago?

Ask Tom why: Which major league baseball team has had the most games postponed due to inclement weather?
Read more >>

Connect With Us

Weather on the 1's

7-Day Forecast