December 3, 2025 Wednesday Evening Winter Weather
Record cold in Iowa and Illinois will challenge records from late 19th Century
December 2025 was the 5th-warmest December in the 131-year national record (1895–2025), at 37.8°F against a 1991–2020 normal of 34.3°F (+3.5°F).
December 2025 was the 37th-driest December in the 131-year national record (1895–2025), at 2.0in against a 1991–2020 normal of 2.5in (-0.5in).
NOAA/NCEI Climate at a Glance, contiguous United States. This is the observed record for the month, not a score of anything said in this piece — the forecast ledger begins 2026-08-17 and cannot reach earlier posts.
The bottom will drop out into the morning — and then again Friday over the snow cover — we’ll see just how cold it can get with no winds, clear skies, and frozen ground
Very cold — records from 1800s will collapse over the snow cover of Iowa and Illinois — but Chicago may be spared from subzero “drop off a cliff” if Lake Michigan’s warmth can be “breezed” onshore just a bit (to O’Hare)
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- 805 · laid 2025-12-04T02:11:26.871000Z
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