Streak of 40-degree days or better ends in a hurry

It took 223 days, but it's back.

It's cold.

So cold in fact that the thermometer at O'Hare International Airport the National Weather Service uses to determine Chicago's temperature hasn't had a reading at or above 40 degrees for more than 24 hours.

The last time the area went at least a day without seeing the thermometer reach 40 degrees was April 9. That was so long ago, the Chicago Cubs had only two World Series titles to their name.

While 223 days seems like a long time to go without spending a full day with temperatures in the 30s or lower, the area has actually seen longer streaks in recent years. In fact, since 2000, the average span Chicago has gone with the temperatures reaching at least 40 at some point is 231 days.

In 2012, Chicago went 263 days - from March 6 to Nov. 23 - with the temperature at 40 degrees or more, according to weather service data. The 40-plus-degree-day streak lasted only 204 days in 2006, though.

But weather experts say this cold snap feels colder for two reasons.

First, the wind chill was in the mid- to upper 20s all day Saturday, thanks to gusts of up to 40 mph.

The second reason Saturday felt so cold was we've been spoiled this fall.

"It's a reality check, so to speak, because of how mild it's been," said National Weather Service meteorologist Ricky Castro. "The weather we've been experiencing for the entire fall has not been typical. This weather now is more typical of what we normally see."

Castro blamed the temperature drop on a storm system that rapidly moved cold air from the Great Plains to the Upper Midwest. In 24 hours, temperatures went from 63 degrees at 10:51 a.m. Friday to 36 degrees Saturday at O'Hare's weather station.

While the blast of cold air is a bummer for many, it's not the hassle the first sub-40-degree day was for Chicago last year when 11.2 inches of snow fell at O'Hare over a two-day span Nov. 20-21. Some parts of Lake County got as much as 17 inches during that storm.

Forecasts don't call for the thermometer to hit 40 degrees again until noon Monday.

"Sunday is still going to be cold, but sunny. Then we're going to get back to more average temperatures for this time of year early next week," Castro said.