Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Is the climate of Chicago more similar to Charleston or to Fairbanks, Alaska?
Chicago is a continental four seasons climate with cold, snowy winters and hot, humid summers and a lot of variation in the shoulder seasons with severe thunderstorms and tornadoes in spring and to a lesser extent, summer and fall.
Charleston, SC is a humid subtropical climate with hot, humid, and rainy summers and mostly pleasant mild but coolish (for me) winters but it can get very strong cold snaps relative to its winter averages. It gets hard freezes multiple times every winter, and snowfall on the average of once every 2 or 3 years. It also experiences severe weather in spring and to a lesser extend other seasons as well. Also add the hurricane threat in summer and fall.
Fairbanks, Alaska is a subarctic climate with very severe, brutally cold winters significantly colder and longer than Chicago's, extreme record lows, brief warm summers, and short shoulder seasons. It is the only climate in Alaska that comes to close to having a real summer but it has much colder winter averages and records than places like Anchorage. Thunderstorms are rare due to the high latitude.
I vote for Fairbanks because both have cold winters with lots of snow without any possibility of warmth until spring. Charleston seems to get quite a bit of winter warmth (65 F+) despite it's cold snaps.
Last edited by ABrandNewWorld; 11-21-2014 at 05:59 PM..
Is the climate of Chicago more similar to Charleston or to Fairbanks, Alaska?
Chicago is a continental four seasons climate with cold, snowy winters and hot, humid summers and a lot of variation in the shoulder seasons with severe thunderstorms and tornadoes in spring and to a lesser extent, summer and fall.
Charleston, SC is a humid subtropical climate with hot, humid, and rainy summers and mostly pleasant mild but coolish (for me) winters but it can get very strong cold snaps relative to its winter averages. It gets hard freezes multiple times every winter, and snowfall on the average of once every 2 or 3 years. It also experiences severe weather in spring and to a lesser extend other seasons as well. Also add the hurricane threat in summer and fall.
Fairbanks, Alaska is a subarctic climate with very severe, brutally cold winters significantly colder and longer than Chicago's, extreme record lows, brief warm summers, and short shoulder seasons. It is the only climate in Alaska that comes to close to having a real summer but it has much colder winter averages and records than places like Anchorage. Thunderstorms are rare due to the high latitude.
I vote for Fairbanks because both have cold winters with lots of snow without any possibility of warmth until spring. Charleston seems to get quite a bit of winter warmth (65 F+) despite it's cold snaps.
I voted for Charleston. Chicago might have cold winters by wimpy American standards but it's not even close to subarctic. The subtropical humid climate starts just a few hours south of Chicago so it's much closer to that climate zone in every way, including proximity.
I voted for Charleston. Chicago might have cold winters by wimpy American standards but it's not even close to subarctic. The subtropical humid climate starts just a few hours south of Chicago so it's much closer to that climate zone in every way, including proximity.
I am going by overall feel on most days. Charleston winters; most days, people are walking around in jeans and a sweatshirt, green lawns, and more tee-shirt days (65+ in the sun) than "bundle up" (parka, scarf, gloves, boots, thermals) days. Most winters don't see any snow and the ones that do are usually one day events with a couple of inches that melt the next day.
In both Chicago and Fairbanks, all winter long is about bundling up to go outside, shoveling snow on your driveway, driving in snow, and the snow cover lasting throughout the winter. Yes, in Chicago it starts later and ends earlier than in Fairbanks and Chicago might get a few sweatshirt and jeans days in winter while Fairbanks does not. Neither can get a t-shirt day in mid-winter while Charleston gets plenty. Fairbanks also gets much more extreme cold so bundling up is more extreme. But the overall "feel" is more similar.
Edit: I can't believe Charleston is winning by a 2:1 margin.
Last edited by ABrandNewWorld; 11-22-2014 at 11:14 AM..
Chicago's climate has more in common with Charleston's, I don't even know how this is a debate. Chicago and Charleston are generally effected by the same weather patterns, and their averages temperatures are only 14F apart (vs 24F with Fairbanks).
Yes, we all know Chicago has terrible winters, but Fairbanks winters are off-the-charts cold, so much so that its hardiness zone is 1, Chicago's is 6, and Charleston's is 9.
Charleston. Fairbanks is just another level of cold in the winter (though it can get "mild" winter weather as well, which is rarely much above freezing). It usually gets to -40 or even -50F or so a few days there every winter. And in summer, Chicago is typically hot and humid, like Charleston (though the latter is far worse). Fairbanks can get hot, but usually has cooler, more manageable summers overall.
While Chicago's winters are too cold and snowy there's nothing like the deadly cold that Fairbanks gets.
Also summer in Chicago is more similar to Charleston than Fairbanks.
Definitely Charleston. South Carolina still has cold winters (similar to Seattle or Portland) and Chicago and SC both have hot humid summers. Fairbanks has a low humidity summer that's barely warm.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
