Grand Chain Dam 53, Illinois climate: Climate normals at a NOAA weather station
Grand Chain Dam 53's normal year runs from 26°F January nights to 89°F July afternoons, with 49.4 inches of precipitation and 7 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 14.4°C, January lows of −3°C, July highs of 32°C, 1,255 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationGrand Chain Dam 53
- Station IDUSC00113580
- Location37.20°N 89.04°W
- Elevation385 ft (117 m)
On October 23, the normal high in Grand Chain Dam 53 is 68°F and the normal low 46°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 26%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Grand Chain Dam 53.
- Jan 43° 26°
- Feb 48° 30°
- Mar 57° 37°
- Apr 68° 47°
- May 77° 56°
- Jun 86° 65°
- Jul 89° 69°
- Aug 89° 67°
- Sep 83° 60°
- Oct 71° 48°
- Nov 58° 39°
- Dec 47° 31°
Each month: normal high (large) and low, °F. Fill: the month's normal mean, colder blue to hotter red.
What is the weather like at Grand Chain Dam 53 each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 89°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 26°F. The most precipitation falls in April (5.15 in), the least in August (3.03 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 43°F | 26°F | 34.6°F | 4.23 | 2.1 | 10 | <1 | 23 | 9 h 50 min |
| February | 48°F | 30°F | 38.7°F | 3.86 | 2.5 | 10 | <1 | 18 | 10 h 50 min |
| March | 57°F | 37°F | 47.1°F | 4.77 | 0.7 | 10 | <1 | 10 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 68°F | 47°F | 57.5°F | 5.15 | 0.0 | 10 | <1 | 1 | 13 h 10 min |
| May | 77°F | 56°F | 66.6°F | 4.92 | 0.0 | 10 | <1 | <1 | 14 h 10 min |
| June | 86°F | 65°F | 75.2°F | 4.13 | 0.0 | 9 | 8 | <1 | 14 h 40 min |
| July | 89°F | 69°F | 78.9°F | 3.28 | 0.0 | 8 | 15 | <1 | 14 h 30 min |
| August | 89°F | 67°F | 77.9°F | 3.03 | 0.0 | 6 | 13 | <1 | 13 h 40 min |
| September | 83°F | 60°F | 71.5°F | 3.35 | 0.0 | 7 | 5 | <1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 71°F | 48°F | 59.8°F | 4.04 | 0.1 | 8 | <1 | 1 | 11 h 20 min |
| November | 58°F | 39°F | 48.2°F | 4.41 | 0.0 | 8 | <1 | 9 | 10 h 10 min |
| December | 47°F | 31°F | 38.9°F | 4.24 | 1.8 | 10 | <1 | 18 | 9 h 40 min |
| Year (annual) | 68°F | 48°F | 57.9°F | 49.41 | 7.2 | 107 | 41 | 80 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 6°C | −3°C | 1.4°C | 107 mm | 5 cm |
| February | 9°C | −1°C | 3.7°C | 98 mm | 6 cm |
| March | 14°C | 3°C | 8.4°C | 121 mm | 2 cm |
| April | 20°C | 8°C | 14.2°C | 131 mm | 0 cm |
| May | 25°C | 14°C | 19.2°C | 125 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 30°C | 18°C | 24.0°C | 105 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 32°C | 20°C | 26.1°C | 83 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 31°C | 20°C | 25.5°C | 77 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 28°C | 16°C | 21.9°C | 85 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 22°C | 9°C | 15.4°C | 103 mm | 0 cm |
| November | 14°C | 4°C | 9.0°C | 112 mm | 0 cm |
| December | 8°C | −1°C | 3.8°C | 108 mm | 5 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00113580; annual normals. Wet days: 0.01 inch or more; 90°F days and freezing nights: NOAA's day counts. Daylight: sunrise to sunset on the 15th, computed from the latitude.
Which months are mildest at Grand Chain Dam 53?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in April, May, September and October. Of those, September has the fewest days with rain (7).
That is a measurement, not a recommendation: it counts the months whose normal afternoon high sits between 65°F and 85°F, where a light layer is enough by day.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00113580.
When is the last frost at Grand Chain Dam 53?
In Grand Chain Dam 53, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after April 3 in half of years and after April 21 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before November 5 in half of years and before October 23 in one year in ten.
Frost-free in half of yearsFrost in 1 to 9 years out of 10Frost most years
- Last spring frost, half of years after
- April 31 year in 10 after April 21; 9 in 10 after March 17
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- November 51 year in 10 before October 23; 9 in 10 before November 22
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 216 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 239 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after March 22 in half of springs and before November 17 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Grand Chain Dam 53 in zone 7a in ZIP code 62970, the nearest ZIP area.
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Illinois · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00113580; USDA 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map, ZIP listings: PRISM Group, Oregon State University, https://prism.oregonstate.edu, accessed October 8, 2026. A 10% date means one year in ten has a frost after it in spring or before it in autumn.
How hot and how cold does it get at Grand Chain Dam 53?
In a normal year in Grand Chain Dam 53, 41 days a year reach 90°F (1 of them 100°F or more), 80 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 107 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 41a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 80a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 13high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 107a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 2a normal year
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00113580.
How sunny is it at Grand Chain Dam 53?
Over a year 75% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds at Grand Chain Dam 53, 4.3 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (82%) and December the cloudiest (64%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 66% | 2.2 |
| February | 65% | 2.8 |
| March | 67% | 3.8 |
| April | 73% | 5.1 |
| May | 75% | 5.7 |
| June | 82% | 6.5 |
| July | 82% | 6.3 |
| August | 82% | 5.7 |
| September | 81% | 4.8 |
| October | 76% | 3.5 |
| November | 72% | 2.5 |
| December | 64% | 1.9 |
Source: NASA POWER solar climatology, 2001-2020 (CERES SYN1deg). Satellite-based, for the 1-degree cell (about 100 km across) around the station, so it describes the area rather than the airport.
How many heating and cooling degree days does Grand Chain Dam 53 record?
A normal year at Grand Chain Dam 53 brings 4,102 heating degree days, 24% fewer than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 1,546 cooling degree days, 70% more than the median (908). Five months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 4,461 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 941 | 0 |
| February | 738 | 0 |
| March | 558 | 2 |
| April | 248 | 23 |
| May | 71 | 121 |
| June | 5 | 310 |
| July | 0 | 430 |
| August | 0 | 400 |
| September | 22 | 215 |
| October | 204 | 43 |
| November | 506 | 3 |
| December | 809 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 4,102 | 1,546 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00113580. A degree day is one degree of a day's mean temperature below 65°F (heating) or above it (cooling); utilities use them to estimate energy use.
How does Grand Chain Dam 53's climate compare?
Grand Chain Dam 53 is warmer than 142 of the 144 places with their own NOAA record in Illinois, and wetter than 134. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 57.9°F is warmer than 69%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Grand Chain Dam 53 is Cfa: temperate, no dry season, hot summer. What the classes mean.
Places with the most similar year elsewhere
Measured month by month on the normal high, low and precipitation, among places of 20,000 or more people in other states:
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals for every station PlainClimate covers. Similarity: the root-mean-square difference of the 36 monthly figures, precipitation weighted so an inch counts like 6°F.
Which places near Grand Chain Dam 53 share this climate record?
10 places have no NOAA station with 1991-2020 normals of their own, and this station is the nearest full record. A place's own climate can differ from these figures, by several degrees where it sits much higher or lower than the station, nearer the coast, or inside a large city's heat; for the larger places the next nearest records are named with their yearly mean, so the spread around them is visible, and places of 50,000 or more have their own page with NOAA's gridded normals.
- La Center, KY861 people · 10 mi SE
- Kevil, KY573 people · 12 mi SE
- Ullin, IL460 people · 9 mi NW
- Karnak, IL403 people · 7 mi NE
- Olmsted, IL267 people · 3 mi SW
- Cypress, IL219 people · 11 mi N
- Bandana, KY215 people · 7 mi SE
- New Grand Chain, IL146 people · 4 mi N
- Pulaski, IL143 people · 9 mi W
- Belknap, IL86 people · 10 mi NE
Source: Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer (place centers) and Vintage 2024 population estimates. Distance and direction from the station to each place's center.
Questions about Grand Chain Dam 53's climate
What is the coldest month at Grand Chain Dam 53?
January, with a normal high of 43°F and a normal low of 26°F. The warmest is July (89°F by day, 69°F at night).
Does it snow at Grand Chain Dam 53?
Yes: 7 inches in a normal year, falling on 4 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in February (2.5 inches).
What is the rainiest month at Grand Chain Dam 53?
April, with 5.15 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is August with 3.03 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Grand Chain Dam 53 in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Grand Chain Dam 53 in zone 7a in ZIP code 62970, the nearest ZIP area.
How late can frost come at Grand Chain Dam 53?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after April 3; in one year in ten it comes after April 21. Waiting until April 21 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Illinois climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Cairo, IL14 miles from this station, 58.1°F a year
- Paducah, KY17 miles from this station, 58.8°F a year
- Anna, IL22 miles from this station, 58.5°F a year
- Brookport, IL22 miles from this station, 57.3°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made