The airport is now -1.58″ from average precipitation for the year. There are slight chances for showers and even a few thunderstorms this week, but we are not looking at potential for “drought busters”. If there is no measurable rainfall at O’Hare by the end of Wednesday, this will be the second driest May in Chicago history. A monthly rainfall total of 0.42″, which is all we’ve seen so far, would be 4.07″ drier than average. An average May gets 4.49″ of rain.
Chicago’s driest May was in 1992, which saw only 0.30″. 1994 is currently the second driest with 0.58″. This would be the driest May since then.
To add on to how out of the ordinary this May has been, Chicago’s three wettest Mays have been in the last 6 years. In, fact we set a new record in three straight years.
2018 8.21″
2019 8.25″
2020 9.51″
Last May was drier than average, with O’Hare receiving 3.47″, a little more than an inch below average.
