Factbox: Chicago Weather Throughout 2011 (ContributorNetwork)

According to the Chicago Tribune, October was an extremely dry month for Illinois, with precipitation across the state more than an inch below average for the month. Colchester, a small town near Macomb, experienced the driest October with only 0.22 inches of precipitation. Most of western Illinois saw less than an inch of rain for the entire month.

Here are some facts about the extreme weather the Chicago area has experienced this year:

* Late January and early February saw a major blizzard and frigid temperatures, according to Chicago Breaking News.

* The Washington Post reported the blizzard was so intense that it was Chicago's third-biggest snowstorm on record, putting it at the top with the blizzards of 1999 and 1967.

* The Windy City saw up to 20.2 inches of snow and snow drifts up to 12 feet.

* CNN reported that the National Weather Service issued a special advisory warning residents to stay indoors after the snow storm created a "potentially life threatening situation."

* Following the mass amounts of snow, temperatures dropped to 11-15 degrees below zero, with wind chills between 25 to 35 below zero.

*Mid-February also saw spring-like temperatures nearly close to 60 degrees, reported Yahoo! News.

* Chicago braved yet another snow storm in late February, a record-breaker with it being the snowiest February on record with a total of 28.7 inches, reported the Chicago Sun-Times.

* According to the Huffington Post, the spring months brought more extreme weather, including the threat of hail and tornadoes in April.

* Sweltering temperatures plagued July, as noted by another Huffington Post article. In some places the heat index reached 111 degrees.

* By the beginning of late-July, the high temperatures and humidity had already claimed the lives of six people, a majority elderly residents, reported Yahoo! News.

* The heat wave was compared to 1995 Chicago heat wave which led to more than 700 heat-related deaths.

* Heavy and record-breaking rainstorms pushed through Chicago in late July, according to the Chicago Tribune, resulting in dangerous flash foods, extensive damage to homes and property, and over 150,000 residences experiencing power outages.

* Rainfall recorded at O'Hare Airport totaled 6.91 inches of rain by 6:50 a.m. on July 23, the largest single-day rainfall since records began in the state in 1871.

* In September, the Chicago Tribune noted that the National Weather Service announced that the summer of 2011 would go down in the books as one of the wettest and hottest summers for the Chicago area.

Rachel Bogart provides an in-depth look at current environmental issues and local Chicago news stories. As a college student from the Chicago suburbs pursuing two science degrees, she applies her knowledge and passion to both topics to garner further public awareness.

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Factbox: Deadliest single tornadoes in U.S. history (Reuters)

(Reuters) – A powerful tornado scored a direct hit Joplin killing at least 116 people and leaving about 400 more injured, authorities said on Monday.

The Joplin tornado is the deadliest single twister since Woodward, Oklahoma in 1947.

Here is a list of the deadliest tornadoes in U.S. history:

1. Mar 18, 1925 Missouri/Illinois/Indiana; 695 dead

2. May 6, 1840 Natchez, Mississippi; 317 dead

3. May 27, 1896 St. Louis, Missouri; 255 dead

4. April 5, 1936 Tupelo, Mississippi; 216 dead

5. April 6, 1936 Gainesville, Georgia; 203 dead

6. April 9, 1947 Woodward, Oklahoma; 181 dead

7. April 24,1908 Amite, La./Purvis, Miss.; 143 dead

8. June 12, 1899 New Richmond, Wisconsin; 117 dead

9. May 22, 2011 Joplin, Missouri; 116 dead

10. June 3, 1953 Flint, Michigan; 115 dead

NOTE: The death toll may rise more in Joplin as the search for missing people continues. Also, the figures do not include the series of tornadoes in the Southeast including Alabama in April 2011 which killed at least 346 people in seven states. Of those, 238 deaths were in Alabama, 41 of which were in Tuscaloosa County.

SOURCE: Storm Prediction Center of National Weather Service's National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, "25 deadliest tornadoes."

(Compiled by Greg McCune; Editing by Ellen Wulfhorst)

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Factbox: 2011 on pace to be deadliest U.S. tornado year (Reuters)

(Reuters) – The tornado that raked Joplin, Missouri, on Sunday was the deadliest single twister in the United States since 1953, putting 2011 on pace for a possible record year for tornado fatalities, weather experts said on Monday.

Here are facts and figures about the Joplin tornado and its place in the weather record, based on data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Weather Service:

* The Joplin tornado of May 22 was the deadliest U.S. tornado since 1953, with 116 people confirmed dead as of Monday, tying fatalities in a major tornado that hit Flint, Michigan in 1953.

* This is the eighth-deadliest tornado year on record in the United States, with 481 people killed. This year is now on pace for the full year to set a record for tornado fatalities, according to U.S. records.

* April was a record month for the number of U.S. tornadoes, with 875; the previous monthly record was 267, set in 1974, but this was before the advent of technologies like Doppler radar, mobile electronics and the Internet, which all ease tornado tracking and reporting.

* There was an average of 24 minutes between the time a tornado warning was issued for Joplin and the time the tornado hit. This compares to a national average of 14 minutes. Outlooks for severe weather were issued three days in advance.

* The Joplin tornado was an EF-4 tornado on the Enhanced Fujita Scale. Winds reached 190-198 miles an hour. An EF-4 tornado is capable of causing extreme damage, with well-constructed and whole frame houses leveled; cars and other large objects thrown and small missiles generated. An EF-5 tornado is capable of total destruction.

(Reporting by Deborah Zabarenko; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)

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