CHICAGO, Feb. 16 (Xinhua) -- The first 14 days in February were about 11 degrees Celsius above normal, and tied to the second warmest first half of February in Chicago on record, as against the warmest first half of February with an average daily temperature of 5.22 degrees Celsius in 1882. Trent Ford, the Illinois state climatologist, attributed the above-average temperatures largely to a "strong" El Niño and long-term warming due to climate change. This climatological winter, December, January and February together with just a couple weeks of February left, has also been a top five warmest winter season on record in Chicago, Ford said. If warmer temperatures continue into March, an early start to spring is possible, Ford said. El Niños usually begin in the summer and peak in intensity during the winter.
