The warm January may make you think a number of records were set for high temperatures.

But Jim Angel, climatologist with the Illinois State Water Survey in Champaign, said the month will likely only rank in the top 20 Januarys for above average temperatures.  He says the month ran about six degrees above normal.

Angel said the unusual warmth in December and January doesn't mean February will be the same.  He said the forecast for February calls for the milder temperatures to continue.  But Angel said you shouldn't put your snow shovels away yet.     

Angel said the temperature came close to the record of 58 degrees on Monday, climbing to 56.  Tuesday's record is 66 degrees, set in 1989.  The forecast calls for a high Tuesday of around 62 degrees.

Most of the precipitation that's fallen lately has been in the form of rain instead of snow due to the mild temperatures, producing ample rainfall, he said.


He noted this year's mild winter is in sharp contrast to last winter when cold weather lingered from December through February, and 40 inches of snow coated the ground.