Predict Denver's First Measurable Snowfall, 2020 | Contest ends midnight Sunday, Sep 6th | ENTER HERE!
Latest
ContestsNinth annual First Snowfall Prediction Contest starts today!
By Brendan Heberton
Mon, Sep 20, 2021
The First Measurable Snowfall Prediction Contest 2021 starts today, and runs until midnight of Monday, September 27th (weather permitting). It's been another hot September across the region, but snow will be in the forecast before you know it. Time to put on your forecasting hat and think SNOW! There are a couple of changes to the forecast this year. The first is that first place won't be ski lift tickets as it'
Denver Forecast
Sunday's wind to blow in much cooler temperatures Monday
By Matt Makens
Sun, Sep 19, 2021
Wind increased Sunday ahead of a cold front that will drop temperatures pretty significantly for the early part of the week. The wind from Sunday afternoon is mostly a westerly warm wind, but that direction shifts by Sunday evening to that of a north wind and cooler temperatures will follow - perhaps a shower or two, also. Monday's highs in the 60s will be the coolest highs since May 31st when Denver had a high of 61. It was also the final week of May when Denver had lows in the lower 40s w
Denver Forecast
Cool weather Friday doesn't last, Denver to hit 90s Saturday
By Matt Makens
Fri, Sep 17, 2021
If you woke up early Friday you felt some cool air, the coolest in more than 100 days. DIA was sitting in the upper 40s as of 7 am Friday where the last time a temperature in the 40s was recorded was June 1st. The cool start to the day will continue with highs in the 70s which is certainly not a cold day but will be the coolest high temperature since late May. Denver is expected to hit 73 Friday before a significant warm up for the weekend. With 80s and 90s on tap for the weekend, the taste o
Climate
Climate
Through July, number of 90 degree days in Denver this year trails pace of record-setting 2020
By Matt Makens
Thu, Aug 05, 2021
Pollution
Denver's summer of poor air quality continues, wildfire smoke is only part of the issue
By Brendan Heberton
Tue, Aug 03, 2021
Climate
Analyzing Colorado's precipitation trends over the last 125 years
By Matt Makens
Wed, Jul 21, 2021
Previous Posts
AM UpdateWarm and mostly dry through the weekend, turning cooler with a chance of mountain snow by next week
By Brendan Heberton
Wed, Sep 15, 2021
Cooler weather over the last couple of days, as well as spotty strong storms across Eastern Colorado have been a welcome relief to the recent record heat we've seen across the state. Precipitation totals since Sunday (below) show that while not everyone saw rain (we only picked up a few stray drops!) some folks saw some appreciable rain, and in a few cases far too much hail . Precipitation totals Mon and TueAs we look ahead to the rema
Weather5280 Insider
An early check on the 'winter' outlook for fall 2021 through spring 2022
By Matt Makens
Mon, Sep 13, 2021
We're about a month away from issuing our official winter outlook we do each year in early to mid October. Today we'll take a look at some of the big drivers we are watching for the next half a year or so, as we begin our shift from the warm (hot) season to the cool season. La Niña will spread its impact across the country for the second year in a row leaving the West in dire need of water. Ocean conditions point toward continued drought for the
Denver Forecast
Cooler temperatures to start the week, showers and storms for some
By Brendan Heberton
Mon, Sep 13, 2021
A quick update this morning to take a look at the upcoming week, which will feature some cooler temperatures (though it's all relative when coming off the record heat we've been seeing) and at least a chance of showers and storms over the next couple of days as well. The best chance of those showers and storms will come today and tomorrow along the Front Range, with about a 25 to 30% chance today, and closer to 45 to 50% on Tuesday. Somewhat remarkably, the "coolest" day of the week which is
Denver Forecast
Record temperatures forecast across Colorado today under September heat wave
By Brendan Heberton
Fri, Sep 10, 2021
Record heat in September has become something of a staple in recent years. Even last year, which saw one of the earliest snowfalls on record in Denver, boasted some extreme September heat as well. You can revisit the remarkable week in weather we had a year ago at this time below, when we went from triple-digit heat to snow in a matter of a couple days. Here’s the long list
State of the Atmosphere
The State of the Atmosphere: Sunday, September 5th, 2021
By Brendan Heberton
Sun, Sep 05, 2021
Tropical moisture delivered in a big way for some of us over the last week, but left many out to dry. For the northern urban corridor, including our station in west Denver, not much to speak of on the precipitation front, though some cooler days and occasional showers were welcome. The greatest precipitation anomalies appeared over Arizona, southeast Utah, New Mexico, the central plains of Colorado, and then east of our area. From Kansas to North Dakota the last week was a wet one. Looking c
Denver Forecast
Cooler for all, rainy for Colorado's mountains
By Matt Makens
Wed, Sep 01, 2021
A couple of changes, cooler and wetter weather, kick-off today and will run through the Labor Day weekend. The biggest change for the state overall will be cooler temperatures to end the week. Today, the mountains will be cooling off. Thursday, the metro locations and the plains will feel temperatures taking a dip, too. Denver, racking up more 90-degree days will feel 80s for awhile - much more seasonal. For parts of the mountains, frost will be possible during Labor Day weekend. For an exa
State of the Atmosphere
The State of the Atmosphere: Sunday, August 29th, 2021
By Brendan Heberton
Sun, Aug 29, 2021
Hurricane Ida makes landfall in SE Louisiana as a Category 4 storm All eyes of the meteorological world, and thoughts of our nation are focused on the Gulf Coast today as hurricane Ida made landfall this morning as a major Category 4 hurricane southwest of New Orleans. The storm brought with it 150mph winds at its core as it moved onshore today, and will batter the region with hurricane-force winds, storm surge, and for some areas over a foot of rain through the night. Hurricane Ida shortly
Denver Forecast
Next cool down arrives this weekend for Denver and plains
By Matt Makens
Thu, Aug 26, 2021
Hot weather for the low country returns Friday and Saturday, meanwhile the mountains are warmer than average too. Yet, a briefly cooler change does arrive this weekend. That may be over-selling the cool down considering it is only by a few degrees. If we look at temperatures across the Central U.S. Friday through Sunday we see a slight cool down for Saturday and Sunday when we cool off by five to ten degrees, or so. As you might have noticed, this cool down is really just for some of the low
Insider Pro Update
Drought update & the outlook: Thursday, August 26th, 2021
By Matt Makens
Thu, Aug 26, 2021
During the past week there was little change in the drought situation for the U.S., however, during the past month there are more areas of drought growth than suppression. The improved areas are mostly those in the Southwest where the monsoonal flow provided some moisture during the past month: Note that the wetter than normal areas from Utah to Canada have not been wet enough to change the drought in those areas. As we enter into the last month of this water year, there is a lot of progress
AM Update
Saturday AM update: Afternoon showers and storms possible Saturday, hotter and drier Sunday
By Brendan Heberton
Sat, Aug 21, 2021
Highs will top out in the low 80s across the greater Denver metro area Saturday, with about a 30% chance of storms in the forecast this afternoon and evening. While nothing like what we saw on Thursday, it's good to be aware and look for the chance for at least brief downpours later this afternoon. Probabilities for meaningful precipitation are pretty low, but a nice short wave scooting across the state later today, combined with relatively healthy precipitable water values could mean a few
Severe Weather
Severe weather to move across Denver area and the region Thursday
By Weather5280
Thu, Aug 19, 2021
Severe weather is likely from the foothills to the plains Thursday afternoon and evening. Hail and an isolated tornado will be threats from the storms as they march east. The National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorm watch for areas shaded yellow here: Severe weather, as of 3 pm, was farther west than the official watch area indicates in that image above, however, the watch was extended to the west to cover the damaging storms that developed near the city [https://twitter.com/NWSBo
PM Update
Tuesday PM update: Temperatures cool late week, but will we see rain?
By Brendan Heberton
Tue, Aug 17, 2021
A quick update on the cool down we advertised in our last update due to arrive for the later this week. A 5 to 10 degree drop still appears on track (perhaps a bit more in spots), but whether or not we see any moisture associated with the cooler temperatures remains to be seen. Most model guidance has backed off considerably today on precipitation amounts, especially east of the hills. For the Denver area, we can see an uptick in probabilities for Thursday (yes a few storms around today as w
AM Update
Respite from the smoke, but watch for severe storms: Friday AM update
By Brendan Heberton
Fri, Aug 13, 2021
While Air Quality Alerts remain in effect along the northern urban corridor through midday Friday, there's some hope for a least a brief break from the smoke later today and Saturday before the next batch of smoke may arrive for the latter half of the weekend. A look at the latest HRRR smoke model shows this – note the brighter colors receding across Colorado early in the animation, but then are transported back in along the northwest flow aloft by late in the day Saturday or early Sunday: A
Weather5280 Insider
Some drought improvement heading into August's outlook
By Brian Bledsoe
Mon, Aug 09, 2021
Despite some good news in the form of a relatively active monsoon so far this year, drought continues across most of the Western United States, with conditions continuing to deteriorate across the northern High Plains. If we look at the Drought Monitor class change over the last four weeks, we find the greatest improvement across portions of Arizona, New Mexico, and Western Colorado, while surrounding areas west, north, and northeast generally saw drought conditions worsen or expand in cover
Fire Weather
Denver's air quality among worst in the world this weekend
By Matt Makens
Sun, Aug 08, 2021
The latest surge of smoke that increased across Colorado Saturday led to Denver climbing the list of worst air qualities in the world and hit that terrible number one spot Saturday afternoon. Based on IQAir data Saturday afternoon, here's Denver in the top spot: The smoke was forecast days in advance, and tracked easily on satellite images as it moves into Colorado Saturday morning; As far as the forecast for Sunday , continued smoke. Although
Wildfire
Smoke holds on for the weekend, despite high hopes for clear skies
By Brendan Heberton
Fri, Aug 06, 2021
We can't seem to catch a break this summer, as we reside yet another day under an Air Quality Alert across much of the state of Colorado. Despite high hopes for smoke-filled skies to clear out for the weekend, it appears at least Saturday will remind quite smoky around here. Denver’s summer of poor air quality continues, wildfire smoke is only part of the issueToday marks yet another day where an Air Quality Alert is in place along the urban corridor and much of Eastern Colorado. It’s been an
Insider Pro Update
Drought update & the outlook: Friday, August 6th, 2021
By Matt Makens
Fri, Aug 06, 2021
By and large there was little change to the drought situation this week, with few improvements in the outlook. We did see some improved conditions to the Four Corners and Southwest where the monsoonal flow has delivered some rainfall. The Central and Northern Rockies to Northern High Plains saw drought conditions increase during the week. The extreme and exceptional drought acreage is the most the US has experienced in over 20 years. So, where's the relief? You can see the favored areas for