Chicago Tribune from Chicago, Illinois • Page 2-8

8 METRO CHICAGO TRIBUNE SECTION 2 TUESDAY DECEMBER 28, 2004 WEATHER REPORT TOM SKILLING 7-DAY FORECAST WGN-TV WEATHER CENTER Aftermath of the earthquake: Shorter days I A Tom Skilling is chief meteorologist at WGN-TV His forecasts can be seen TUESDAY, DEC. 28 Chicago: A thaw gets under way as temps head above freezing for the first time since Dec. 21. Cloudiness lingers although a few peeks of sun cannot be ruled out. South to southwest winds freshen this Incredibly, the magnitude hour day is now one ten-thou It is estimated that during the 9.0 earthquake that struck off Sumatra on Sunday morning caused a vertical displacement of so much material that the rotation period of the Earth has been permanently altered.

By a tiny but measurable amount, the Earth is now rotating more quickly on its axis, and the 24- sandth second shorter. That's the result of calculations based on preliminary data made by Oak Park astronomer Dr. Leslie M. Golden. It's analogous to the increase in rotational speed that a twirling ice skater experiences when he or she draws in their arms.

Sumatran quake, a block of material roughly 600 miles in length and 100 miles in width fell 30 feet closer to the Earth's axis of rotation. The planet has responded by rotating more rapidly, albeit ever so slightly, and our 24-hour days are now one ten-thousandth second shorter. Monday through Friday on WGN News at noon and 9 p.m. HIGH LOW 39130 meteorologists Steve Kahn, Richard Koeneman and Paul weather producer Bill Snyder contribute to this page. TEMPS ABOVE FREEZING afternoon.

Cloudiness FOR FIRST TIME IN 7 DAYS at night. WGN-TV Dailey plus HIGH TEMPERATURES: 0s 10s 20s 30s 40s 50s 60s 70s 80s 90s 100s ASK TOM WHY MIDWEEK PATTERN CHANGE Cold snap in final hours Frigid temperatures depart the area as unseasonably mild air arrives later this week. Dec. 19-Jan. 1 departure from normal temperatures at Chicago 20 124 Seattle 4737 20s 30s 20s International Falls 221 Green Bay 301 9 Bismarck 3314 Portland 4937 Buffalo 3330 Rapid City 4823 Boston 2827 New York 3332 30s A Detroit 3129 Boise 4429 Minneapolis 3422 Chicago 3930 Pittsburgh 3430 Salt Lake City (j) ueveiana 3331 0.25" 1" San Francisco 645 Des Moines 4534 Cheyenne 4927 4625 Reno 4527 Omaha Washington D.C.

3430 Indianapolis 40s 4628 Dear Tom, Is it possible for the entire Earth to be flooded all at once? A sixth grader in Ms. Thompson's class, Rush Day School, Chicago Dear Sixth Grader, Water vapor is the gas that results when liquid water evaporates, and water vapor is present in varying quantities everywhere in the atmosphere. Compared to the total amount of water substance present on the Earth as liquid water in the oceans, lakes and rivers and as snow and ice on land the amount of water that exists as vapor in the atmosphere is min-iscule. In fact, if the entire load of atmospheric water vapor worldwide were suddenly condensed out of the atmosphere and deposited as liquid on the ground, it would be sufficient to produce only about one inch of water over the Earth's surface. Were this to occur, the instantaneous effect would be to cause ocean levels to rise one inch an amount obviously insufficient to cause flooding.

Write to: ASK TOM WHY, 2501 Bradley Place, Chicago, IL 60618 or asktomwhywgntv.com Denver 5526 19 DEC. Kansas City 5535 Las Vegas 5045 Louisville 4336 40s 50s St. Louis 5441 Wichita 6137 Charlotte 4630 Nashville 5240 3" Los Angeles 5840 Phoenix 6553 Recent cold spell (Dec. 19-27): 1 3th coldest of past 1 35 years Dec. 1 9-27 average temperature 2004 NORMAL DEPARTURE 14.6 I 26.8 ian Diego XT Oklahoma City Little Rock 6144 5543 Atlanta 5332 6154 Albuquerque 5533 50s Birmingham 5736 A 60s 2" 1" 0.25" CONDITIONS PRESSURE Cj Rain Snow Clouds High Low Dallas 6351 Thursday highs, surface winds Thu.

departure from normal FRONTS SEVERE WEATHER Risk through tonight Orlando 6750 Houston nw 6854 Orleans 6547 Moderate Slight High Cold Warm Stationary 50 70s Miami 7263 MILD Jet stream PRECIPITATION 0.00" 24-hour totals (water equivalent) (Weather features, clouds and precipitation at 6 a.m.) SUNDAY, JAN. 2 SATURDAY, JAN. 1 Sunshine followed by increasing cloudiness late. Not as mild MONDAY, JAN. 3 A chance of rain early, then turning partly cloudy and cooler after a mild WEDNESDAY, DEC.

29 A heavy overcast dominates with some light rain or drizzle possible. THURSDAY, DEC. 30 Cloudy, windy (from the SW) and unseasonably mild with periods of showers. FRIDAY, DEC. 31 Mild at the start but turning cooler as winds shift westerly.

Morning Cloudy with rain beginning by afternoon. Turning breezy and unseasonably mild. but still well HIGH LOW Ci A Readings more than 20 degrees above normal. sprinkles give way to partly cloudy skies. high low start.

45 28 above normal. Light easterly winds hold shoreline temps to the 30s. 42 42 36 54 50 33 43 JO HO oCVx Tl) 'o oo0 (L) Oo0oo0voO i0Voon oo mc 0 oovac f3 T) Chicago" fa Note: Predicted high and low temperatures on theTribune weather page are chronological the "high" refers to the maximum reading expected during the day and the "low" is the minimum reading expected the following night. MIDWEST CITIES CHICAGO DIGEST DECEMBER 28 TEMPERATURES The beauty of rime ice Even in temperatures well below freezing, cloud particles exist as supercooled water droplets. When those cloud or fog droplets strike exposed objects like the branches of trees, they immediately freeze into a milky deposit of ice called rime.

It's a frequently occurring wintertime event in the Appalachian Mountains whose forested peaks are often bathed in clouds. The result is a stunning transformation of the mountain landscape. AIR QUALITY Illinois EPA's air quality index (AQI): 0-50 is good; 5 1 -1 00 moderate; 1 01 -1 50 unhealthy for sensitive groups; 151-200 unhealthy; 200 very unhealthy Monday's reading 67 Tuesday's forecast Moderate Critical pollutant Particulates MONDAY'S TEMPERATURES LOCAL READINGS In this photo, air motion was right-to-left because needles of rime ice build into the wind as the droplets strike vegetation. LOCATION HI Waukegan 27 O'Hare 26 LO 11 8 MONDAY TUESDAY HI LO PR FC HI LO 32 6 pc 48 37 27 6 cl 41 32 31 10 cl 42 33 32 12 cl 42 29 33 14 cl 42 32 36 14 cl 46 35 27 5 cl 37 30 34 13 cl 43 34 26 4 pc 43 35 16 -8 cl 37 29 22 4 .01 cl 36 30 22 -3 cl 38 30 25 -7 .02 sn 30 19 27 2 cl 34 25 28 3 cl 34 28 28 15 cl 38 30 22 -7 .02 sn 31 19 21 5 cl 31 29 23 1 fl 33 29 21 -15 sn 31 23 14 -5 sn 29 23 25 -7 sn 32 28 37 15 cl 43 25 31 10 cl 40 25 42 17 cl 46 25 27 14 cl 35 23 CITY ILLINOIS Carbondale Champaign Decatur Moline Peoria Quincy Rockford Springfield INDIANA Evansville Fort Wayne Indianapolis South Bend WISCONSIN Green Bay La Crosse Madison Milwaukee Wausau MICHIGAN Detroit Grand Rapids Marquette St.Ste. Marie Traverse City IOWA Ames Cedar Rapids Des Moines Dubuque Lakefront 25 20 Midway 26 17 Aurora 26 2 Normal high 31 Record 69 (1984) Normal low 17 Record -13 (1924) SUNRISESUNSET Tuesday 7:19 a.m.

4:28 p.m. Wednesday 7:19 a.m. 4:29 p.m. Thursday 7:19 a.m. 4:30 p.m.

Friday 7:20 a.m. 4:30 p.m. MOON RISESET Tuesday 6:14 p.m. Wednesday 7:17 p.m. 9:43 a.m.

3RD NEW 1STQ FULL Jan. 3 Jan. 10 Jan. 17 Jan. 25 PLANET WATCH RISE SET Mercury 5:32 a.m.

3:02 p.m. Venus 5:36 a.m. 2:56 p.m. (5 Mars 4:36 a.m. 2:07 p.m.

2-Jupiter 17 Saturn 5:44 p.m. 8:35 a.m. BEST VIEWING TIMES Directionangle above horizon O'HARE HUMIDITYAIR PRESSURE MONDAY 6 A.M. NOON 6 P.M. Relative humidity 80 60 60 12 13 Dewpoint Barometer 30.62" 30.61" 30.52" OTHER U.S.

CITIES Photo by Amy White With temperatures in the 20s in western North Carolina, rime frosted the forests above Fairview, N.C., on Dec. 24. Photo by Amy White A close up of rime ice on Pieris japonica, an evergreen shrub NATIONAL EXTREMES Highest 73 in Marianna, Fla. Lowest -19 in Pellston, Mich. LAKE MICHIGAN CONDITIONS TUESDAY WEDNESDAY Winds S15kts.

E12kts. Waves 3 feet 2 feet Monday's water temperature 33 PRECIPITATION Monday (through 8 p.m.): 0.00" 2004 NORMAL December to date 1.12" 2.16" Abilene Albany Albuquerque Amarillo Anchorage Asheville Aspen Atlanta Atlantic City Austin Baltimore Billings Birmingham Bismarck Boise Boston Brownsville Buffalo Burlington (90 is directly above) 69 42.5 Charleston, SC 14.5 SE TUESDAY WEDNESDAY FC HI LO FC HI LO cl 64 46 cl 65 54 cl 29 27 cl 38 25 cl 55 33 sh 50 31 cl 60 34 cl 61 39 25 8 pc 16 5 su 47 26 pc 55 34 sn 35 10 ss 37 19 su 53 32 pc 59 39 pc 35 27 pc 49 32 cl 64 51 cl 68 55 pc 37 29 pc 50 35 pc 43 24 cl 44 25 su 57 36 pc 58 41 cl 33 14 cl 38 26 cl 44 29 rs 41 29 pc 28 27 cl 44 32 cl 74 58 cl 80 62 sn 33 30 cl 37 30 sn 29 23 sn 36 19 su 54 32 pc 62 41 pc 47 32 cl 50 38 su 46 30 pc 59 36 pc 51 31 cl 56 39 cl 49 27 cl 48 30 pc 40 33 cl 46 35 cl 33 31 cl 39 33 cl 52 26 cl 53 30 cl 52 37 pc 57 42 su 50 27 su 61 36 cl 37 31 cl 42 35 pc 27 23 cl 40 19 cl 72 57 cl 73 57 cl 63 51 cl 66 52 pc 64 52 pc 70 55 cl 55 26 cl 54 29 sn 28 12 pc 29 19 cl 63 40 cl 62 41 pc -5 -24 pc -13 -28 cl 28 12 pc 34 26 sh 42 31 sn 36 21 rn 53 43 sh 54 40 pc 73 53 pc 74 56 cl 56 43 pc 63 47 Year to date 31.55" 36.00" 8.5 SE 6:30 a.m. 8 SE 9 6:30 a.m. SNOW ACCUMULATION Monday: 0.0" TUESDAY WEDNESDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY CITY FC HI LO FC HI LO CITY FC HI LO FC HI LO Grand Junction rs 45 27 rs 46 25 Phoenix sh 65 53 rn 60 47 Great Falls pc 41 22 pc 39 21 Pittsburgh pc 34 30 cl 43 30 Harrisburg pc 33 26 pc 46 29 Portland ME pc 26 23 cl 40 21 Hartford pc 32 23 cl 40 28 Portland, OR pc 49 37 sh 46 37 Helena pc 35 16 sn 37 18 Providence pc 32 27 cl 43 30 Honolulu pc 81 67 pc 80 70 Raleigh su 45 28 pc 59 35 Houston pc 68 54 cl 70 55 RapidCity cl 48 23 cl 51 28 Int'l Falls sn 22 1 pc 25 17 Reno rs 45 27 rs 43 30 Jackson pc 60 41 cl 66 48 Richmond pc 39 27 pc 54 34 Jacksonville su 60 42 pc 65 46 Rochester sn 34 30 cl 38 28 Juneau sn 35 30 cl 30 14 Sacramento sh 54 48 sh 54 39 Kansas City cl 55 35 cl 57 43 St. Louis cl 54 41 cl 55 43 LasVegas rn 50 45 sh 51 44 Salem.Ore.

cl 48 35 sh 46 35 Lexington pc 47 34 cl 51 37 Salt Lake City cl 45 34 rs 40 28 Lincoln cl 51 27 cl 55 39 San Antonio cl 65 52 cl 68 59 Little Rock pc 55 43 cl 63 50 San Diego rn 61 54 sh 61 51 Los Angeles rn 58 50 sh 58 50 San Francisco sh 56 45 sh 55 47 Louisville pc 43 36 cl 51 36 San Juan pc 83 72 ts 83 72 Macon su 57 33 su 62 38 Santa Fe pc 50 27 rs 47 27 Memphis pc 54 40 cl 60 49 Savannah su 55 33 pc 62 39 Miami pc 72 63 pc 74 64 Seattle pc 47 37 sh 46 40 Minneapolis fl 34 22 pc 35 29 Shreveport pc 62 49 cl 67 54 Mobile su 61 46 pc 67 46 Sioux Falls pc 40 18 su 46 32 Montgomery su 58 36 pc 63 38 Spokane pc 35 28 rs 34 30 Nashville pc 52 40 cl 57 47 Syracuse sn 31 25 cl 39 26 New Orleans pc 65 47 cl 70 54 Tallahassee su 62 36 su 68 42 New York City pc 33 32 cl 48 35 Tampa pc 71 52 pc 72 55 Norfolk pc 38 30 pc 55 38 Topeka cl 54 33 cl 58 46 Oklahoma City cl 61 44 pc 64 47 Tucson sh 68 50 rn 63 44 Omaha cl 46 28 cl 53 40 Tulsa cl 59 46 cl 62 48 Orlando pc 67 50 pc 73 51 Washngtn D.C. pc 34 30 pc 51 37 Palm Beach pc 70 61 pc 74 62 Wichita cl 61 37 cl 62 43 Palm Springs rn 61 50 sh 59 43 Wilkes Barre cl 30 24 ss 39 25 Philadelphia pc 34 31 cl 47 35 Yuma rn 64 53 rn 65 48 WGN-TVRichard Koeneman TUESDAY WEDNESDAY CITY FC HI LO FC HI LO Lisbon cl 45 34 cl 46 33 London sh 41 27 cl 44 33 Madrid cl 37 25 cl 36 24 Manila ts 86 75 ts 83 72 Mexico City pc 64 42 su 61 40 Monterrey su 74 45 su 73 45 Montevideo pc 69 55 pc 68 56 Montreal sn 25 19 su 23 18 Moscow fl 39 29 fl 38 27 Munich cl 33 26 cl 32 22 Nairobi ts 79 61 pc 82 61 Nassau pc 76 54 pc 73 55 New Delhi su 76 54 su 75 55 Oslo cl 32 18 cl 31 25 Ottawa sn 23 14 su 21 9 Panama City ts 88 75 ts 87 76 Paris rs 40 34 cl 37 24 Prague cl 37 27 cl 38 21 Rio de Janeiro ts 87 75 ts 87 76 Riyadh su 75 51 su 68 50 Rome cl 50 38 sh 45 34 Santiago pc 88 64 pc 90 62 Seoul pc 31 19 pc 33 22 Singapore ts 87 76 ts 88 77 Sofia sh 51 39 sh 54 38 Stockholm cl 30 16 cl 29 18 Sydney pc 74 58 pc 70 53 Taipei pc 67 59 pc 68 56 Tehran su 46 34 pc 40 28 Tokyo cl 44 34 pc 46 34 Toronto sn 28 25 su 34 25 Trinidad pc 88 77 pc 89 76 Vancouver pc 41 36 sh 43 37 Vienna cl 38 28 cl 36 25 Warsaw rs 39 27 cl 39 26 Winnipeg pc 12 7 pc 25 5 WORLD CITIES TUESDAY WEDNESDAY CITY FC HI LO FC HI LO Acapulco pc 86 71 su 85 66 Algiers cl 46 34 sh 43 31 Amsterdam rs 36 24 cl 39 28 Ankara cl 48 30 sh 49 33 Athens sh 56 45 sh 59 48 Auckland pc 65 53 rn 63 51 Baghdad su 55 41 su 58 40 Bangkok pc 90 70 pc 89 71 Barbados pc 88 75 pc 89 76 Barcelona cl 46 35 cl 42 32 Beijing pc 26 15 pc 23 11 Beirut su 64 51 su 65 50 Belgrade cl 52 38 cl 45 30 Berlin cl 33 25 cl 32 22 Bermuda sh 69 57 pc 67 56 Bogota ts 66 53 ts 69 54 Brussels rs 38 24 cl 37 27 Budapest cl 42 30 cl 46 35 Buenos Aires pc 68 52 pc 70 54 Cairo su 66 48 su 69 52 Cancun pc 83 64 pc 82 61 Caracas pc 88 78 pc 89 76 Casablanca pc 52 41 pc 47 38 Copenhagen sn 35 25 cl 33 26 Dublin rs 42 30 cl 44 33 Edmonton pc 25 7 pc 14 1 Frankfurt cl 34 27 cl 34 25 Geneva cl 33 25 cl 32 20 Guadalajara su 66 40 su 68 41 Havana pc 75 56 pc 78 57 Helsinki cl 28 18 cl 28 17 Hong Kong pc 74 61 pc 71 60 Istanbul cl 53 41 sh 55 40 Jerusalem su 65 52 su 67 53 Johannesburg ts 82 57 ts 79 59 Kiev cl 46 34 sh 48 36 Kingston pc 87 75 ts 83 72 Lima pc 77 60 ts 76 61 6:15 a.m. 6:15 a.m. 1:15 a.m. SEASON 5.5" 4.0" NORMAL 9.1" 1 1 .3" O'Hare Int'l Midway Airport Source: Dan Joyce, Cernan Earth Space Center, Triton College Charleston, WV Charlotte Chattanooga Cheyenne Cincinnati Cleveland Colorado Spgs Columbia, MO Columbia, SC Columbus Concord Corpus Christi Dallas Daytona Beach Denver Duluth El Paso Fairbanks Fargo Flagstaff Fresno Ft.

Myers Ft. Smith I 1 WEATHER WORD Drizzle: Droplets of water, diameters of 0.001 inch to 0.01 inch, falling slowly through the air. Unlike fog, drizzle falls to the ground although the droplets appear almost to float while following air currents. It is erroneous to refer to very light rain (larger than 0.01 inch) as drizzle. For up-to-the-minute forecasts by Tom Skilling and additional weather data online, visit chicagotribune.comweather su-sunny pc-partly cloudy cl-cloudy rn-rain ts-thunderstorm sl-sleet sh-showers rs-rainsnow ss-snow showers na-unavailable FORECAST (FC) ABBREVIATIONS: sn-snow fl-flurries fr-freezing rain objects of Right hands are envious no more! sale 12.99 Danecraft cocktail rings.

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