Category Archives: Site News

Thornton Weather launches major site redesign

Changes to Thornton Weather's home page beginning November 2023. (© ThorntonWeather.com)
Changes to Thornton Weather’s home page beginning November 2023. (© ThorntonWeather.com)

It was October 2006 when ThorntonWeather.com first went online and we are proud to be the city’s longest running, most reliable and most comprehensive weather website (more about us here).

Since then, we have had a few different designs, and we are proud to launch our latest. There is a lot to take in but front and center is our revamped main page.

Among the highlights:

  • See everything essential ‘above the fold’ without scrolling including…
  • Current radar, webcam and the latest news right up top for easy reference
  • Easy to read current conditions so you know exactly what is going on at that moment
  • A much-requested feature, a ‘quick look’ at the weather forecast, up top and easy to see
  • The main menu uses new coding that is much more responsive
  • Scrolling down, the main page dashboard has comprehensive conditions and statistics, enough to satisfy any weather geek

There is much more as you click through the various pages (including new mobile pages!) that we will highlight in the coming days and we do still have more work to do. Until then, hop on and take a look! Go: https://www.thorntonweather.com/

ThorntonWeather.com celebrates its 10th birthday

Keeping an eye on the sky since October 2006. ThorntonWeather.com is now beginning its 10th year of operation.
Keeping an eye on the sky since October 2006. ThorntonWeather.com went live on the Internet 10 years ago.

It is hard to believe but it was 10 years ago today on October 25, 2006 that the digital switch was thrown and the first bits of live weather data from our weather station were fed to the Internet.  ThorntonWeather.com was born!

Since that date, we are extremely proud of what the site has become – an indispensable community resource for north Denver metro area residents, businesses and governmental agencies.

On the one year anniversary of the site’s launch, we were receiving on average 750 unique visitors a month.  On the second anniversary that had grown to around 5,000 visitors a month.  For 2016 we are on pace to average well over 25,000 per month!

The response has been absolutely overwhelming to say the least.

We launched the site simply because we wanted to know what was going on with the weather in Thornton and the north Denver metro area.  We don’t live downtown, we don’t live at DIA and the differences in weather between Thornton and those other locations can be considerable.  Apparently many of you agree!

Our site has not only grown in terms of visitors, but perhaps more importantly in terms of the amount of information available.  Certainly we provide the basics of live weather conditions, radar and forecasts.

  • Did you know ThorntonWeather.com is a completely non-profit venture run by a Thornton resident?  We are self-funded but do occasionally receive help from members of the community, something which allows us to keep things up and running. Learn more about how you can help here.

Far more than that, we now have educational information about various weather dangers, historical climate information, satellite imagery, webcams and so much more.  Our news and blog section is continually updated with the latest news and information including items important to the community.

Put simply, there is no other media outlet in the state that provides as much weather news, information and content as we do!

Since our launch we have became very ‘social’ with a growing Facebook page, a Twitter feed and a presence on Google +.  Interacting with our visitors is an integral part of our site and something we enjoy greatly.

  • Stay up to date with Thornton’s weather: Be sure to ‘like’ us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter and add us to your Google+ circles.

We’re just ‘weather geeks’ that love the weather and love our community.  Running ThorntonWeather.com can be a bit expensive and it is time consuming to maintain and operate it but it is worth it.

We’d like to thank all of our visitors for your support in the past and we look forward to continuing to be the best, truly local source for Thornton weather.

Santa’s journey begins, live tracking online

ThorntonWeather.com and NORAD offer the Santa TrackerSanta Claus begins his whirlwind trip around the globe tonight to deliver toys to all the good little boys and girls! For more than 50 years the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) has tracked Kris Kringle on Christmas Eve and helped to ensure he completes his journey safely.

ThorntonWeather.com is pleased to be able to provide live Santa tracking from NORAD right here on our site!

Click here to check it out and be sure to come back often to see where Kris Kringle is at!

Below is the official 2014 NORAD Tracks Santa trailer.

Santa Claus begins annual journey – Track him live

ThorntonWeather.com and NORAD offer the Santa TrackerSanta Claus begins his whirlwind trip around the globe tonight to deliver toys to all the good little boys and girls! For more than 50 years the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) has tracked Kris Kringle on Christmas Eve and helped to ensure he completes his journey safely.

ThorntonWeather.com is pleased to be able to provide live Santa tracking from NORAD right here on our site!

Click here to check it out and be sure to come back often to see where Kris Kringle is at!

Below is the official 2014 NORAD Tracks Santa trailer.

Announcing Tony’s Takes Photography

Longs Peak on a gorgeous early spring day in Colorado.  (© Tony’s Takes)
Longs Peak on a gorgeous early spring day in Colorado. (© Tony’s Takes)

I have always been a shutterbug ever since my parents gave me my first SLR one Christmas when I was in high school.  It wasn’t until recent years however that I began to hone the craft and now I have launched Tony’s Takes Photography.

Certainly I have no illusion of becoming a professional photographer or having the skills of one.  This is purely a hobby for me.  However I think I do a pretty passable job and decided I would like to share my images.  Up until now that has been confined to this website and on social media with friends and family.

Over at Tony’s Takes (www.tonystakes.com) I will be sharing the images I capture.  These will usually be focused on the subjects which interest me most – extreme weather, landscapes and wildlife.  Certainly some of these photos will make their way here as always but that will be the primary spot where I post them.

Don’t worry though.  Weather is still a passion of mine andThorntonWeather.com will be staying around as always and remaining your one and only spot for truly local Thornton weather news and information!

You can find Tony’s Takes Photography at any of the links below and I would truly appreciate you spreading on the work:

February 5, 2014 – Bald eagle takes flight in the fog. (© Tony’s Takes)
February 5, 2014 – Bald eagle takes flight in the fog. (© Tony’s Takes)

Announcing the ThorntonWeather.com monthly photo slideshow

One example of an amazing image captured by a ThorntonWeather.com fan that will be featured in our monthly slideshows. (Marla Winter)
One example of an amazing image captured by a ThorntonWeather.com fan that will be featured in our monthly slideshows. (Marla Winter)

From stunning sunsets and impressive storms to cute snow-covered dogs and amazing wildlife, Coloradans witness amazing things every day.  Starting today ThorntonWeather.com begins a new feature showcasing the imagery captured by cameras and we want YOUR pictures to share with others.

Colorado’s weather is anything but boring and virtually every day we are greeted with wonders large and small.  Even in the quietest of weather conditions, the views of our landscape are stunningly varied from the vast plains to the east through the urban corridor of Denver and Thornton to the massive peaks towering over 14,000 feet high.

We all love our state and the wonders we see every day.  ThorntonWeather.com wants to share what you see with others.

Our monthly photo slideshow is going to feature images that we have taken but more importantly images that you have captured.  The photos can be of anything even remotely weather-related.

Landscapes, current conditions, wildlife, pets, kids.  Whimsical, newsy, artsy.  Taken at the zoo, some other area attraction, a local park, a national park or your backyard.  You name it, we want to see and share it!

Images can be taken in Thornton, Denver or anywhere across the extraordinary Centennial State.  We’ll even take some from out of state if we can tie it to Colorado somehow.

We’ll keep the criteria very open to interpretation with just about any image eligible to be shown in our slideshows.

What do you win for having your image in our slideshow?  We are just a ‘mom and pop’ outfit and make no money from our site so we really don’t have the means to provide prizes.  However you will have our undying gratitude and the satisfaction that your images are shared on the most popular website in Thornton.

To share you images with us and get them included in the slideshow just email them to us or share them with ThorntonWeather.com on any of the various social media outlets.  Links are provided below.

So come on, get those camera’s rolling!

ThorntonWeather.com Website News & Change Log

Web Site Change LogOur website is constantly changing as new features are added and old ones are updated. Check here to learn what new features have been added lately.  If you have a suggestion for a new feature or changes you would like to see, please contact us and let us know!

12/24/13

Not directly weather-related but added live video feeds provided by NASA.  Both are available from the Almanac > Astronomy & Space menu on the left.

  • NASA TV live feed – This is NASA’s television channel providing coverage of what the space agency is doing.
  • ISS live feed – Live video from the International Space Station.  Live video of specific tasks being performed by the astronauts is shown or oftentimes live video from the station’s exterior cameras.

9/14/13

  • The map on our Northeastern Colorado River Heights and Flood Status page was not working due to changes in the feed from the Advanced Hydrologic Prediction Service.  The page has now been updated and incorporates an interactive map.  It also displays river heights and flood status for locations across northeastern Colorado.  You can find the page in the Almanac menu at the left.

9/11/13

  • We noticed our Record Weather Event page that is fed from data from the National Weather Service was not working properly.  This was due to some changes by the NWS.  We have fixed this now and you can always check to see what recent record-breaking weather we have experienced by selecting the Denver / Boulder office from the drop down on the page.  The page itself is under the Almanac / National Weather Service menu on the left.

9/1/13

  • Some much-needed behind the scenes work.  The computer that powers all of our weather equipment – the station software, radar, lightning detector, website, etc – was on its last leg.  It served us well for 5 years and it was time to go.  This weekend we replaced the computer with a brand new one with far more computing power.  The upgrade will allow us to continue to bring you the best local weather information and news in Thornton.

8/12/13

  • Due to changes in the way the U.S. Geological Survey formats its data, we updated our earthquake pages.  The new pages now use a Google map to display recent temblors.  We also have two earthquake pages now: One for quakes within a 500 mile radius of Denver, and one for all earthquakes globally.  You can find the pages in the Almanac menu on the left.

7/14/13

  • Changes to our Live Weather Gauges page. Gauges are a bit bigger and easier to read, we added a wind rose, the scrolling text display now shows the forecast and at the bottom you can select different units of measure.

6/27/13

  • We changed our west facing webcam orientation pointing it a bit more vertical.  This will allow a better view of the skies above while still maintaining perspective of nearby trees.

9/2/12

  • We’ve updated our monthly tables for Denver’s “Normals, Means & Extremes” and “”Top 10″ Precipitation & Temp”.  You can find them under the Almanac menu on the left then go to Climatology & Records.  You can also click here.
  • Some time ago we added a WeatherNation TV page that allows you to view broadcasts from the network live on our site.  Now we have added a National & International Video News page with the latest from NDN’s providers including CBS, AP and many more.  It is available under Area Information to the left and then select Video News.

7/3/12

  • The National Weather Service changed their forecast pages and that necessitated changes of our page as well.  While the basics are the same, we took the opportunity to do a bit of an upgrade.  The page will automatically display the forecast for Thornton as always but now there is a dropdown menu that allows you to easily grab the forecast from more than a dozen other cities across Colorado.  Click here to check it out or select ‘NWS 5 day forecast’ from the Forecasts menu on the left.

6/13/12

  • We already have a number of ways to view current weather conditions locally and from across the globe – see the Live Conditions menu at the left.  One new page we added expands on that and provides conditions from Denver area METAR stations.  METARs are permanent weather stations, oftentimes located at airports, that report current conditions in a standardized format (click here for details).  Our METAR page reads data from locations like Denver International Airport, Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport, Buckley Air Force Base and a number of other locations and provides their reported weather conditions in an easy to view format.  You can access it from the Live Conditions menu on the left or by clicking here.

6/12/12

  • Our Lightning Detection Center pages are among our most popular during severe weather season.  We have just added a new page that uses StormVue NGX to display lightning activity.  Using Flash, the display gives you the ability to zoom in and out, set alarms, choose what type of strikes to display and much more.  You can check it out here or find it in the Lightning menu to the left.

6/10/12

For anyone that reads our news section or views or Facebook page, you are well aware of our fondness for satellite imagery.  The ‘eyes in the sky’ can provide an amazing view of weather and disasters.  We have added two new pages that allow you to view some of the most amazing imagery:

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