The month of November this year was one that saw some widely varying temperatures from comfortable fall readings to bone chilling cold. Precipitation ran light and while we saw our first measurable snows for the season, it was still dry.
With a high pressure ridge above, the month started out quite nice. A cold front moved through on the third and not only cooled things down, but also brought the bulk of our precipitation for the month in the form of rain.
We then saw a week of unseasonably warm conditions that lasted through the 10th. After that, the bottom fell out and the mercury plunged. Five of the next six days failed to climb above freezing as bone-chilling cold more akin to January was seen. We did manage to record more than two inches of snow over the same period.
A largely seasonal weather pattern then settled in with most of the next nine days having readings not too far from average. Three of the last four days of the month then brought back very mild conditions.
Thornton’s overall average temperature for the month was 35.1 degrees. This was well below the long term November average for Denver of 38.3 degrees. Out at the airport, official Denver readings were a bit warmer with an average of 36.2 degrees.
Thornton’s warmest reading in November came on the 29th with maximum of 72.5 degrees. The coldest was -8.8 degrees on the morning of the 13th. Denver’s maximum was similar to ours at 72 degrees but its coldest was a bit further down there at -14 degrees.
Five temperature records were set for the month, only one was for a warm reading. That came on the 9th with a record high minimum.
On the other hand, demonstrating just how significant the cold blast in the middle of the month was, Denver set four cold temperature related records for the month. These included record low maximums on the 11th and 12th and record lows on the 12th and 13th.
In terms of precipitation, Thornton finished below average while Denver was slightly above. The November average is 0.61 inches. Here in Thornton we had a mere 0.39 inches while DIA recorded 0.76.
November is one of our snowiest months but that was certainly not the case this year. While the long term average is 8.7 inches, Thornton recorded only 3.0 inches and Denver 4.0 inches.
Click here to view Thornton’s November 2014 climate report.
From the National Weather Service:
CLIMATE REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BOULDER, CO
144 AM MST MON DEC 1 2014
...................................
...THE DENVER CO CLIMATE SUMMARY FOR THE MONTH OF NOVEMBER 2014...
CLIMATE NORMAL PERIOD 1981 TO 2010
CLIMATE RECORD PERIOD 1872 TO 2014
WEATHER OBSERVED NORMAL DEPART LAST YEAR`S
VALUE DATE(S) VALUE FROM VALUE DATE(S)
NORMAL
................................................................
TEMPERATURE (F)
RECORD
HIGH 80 11/08/2006
LOW -18 11/29/1877
HIGHEST 72 11/29 73 7 71 11/13
11/01
LOWEST -14 11/13 6 -8 12 11/21
AVG. MAXIMUM 50.6 52.1 -1.5 55.1
AVG. MINIMUM 21.8 24.5 -2.7 26.7
MEAN 36.2 38.3 -2.1 40.9
DAYS MAX >= 90 0 0.0 0.0 0
DAYS MAX <= 32 5 2.3 2.7 2
DAYS MIN <= 32 22 23.4 -1.4 25
DAYS MIN <= 0 4 0.6 3.4 0
PRECIPITATION (INCHES)
RECORD
MAXIMUM 3.21 1946
MINIMUM T 1899
1901
1949
TOTALS 0.76 0.61 0.15 0.27
DAILY AVG. 0.03 0.02 0.01 0.01
DAYS >= .01 6 4.7 1.3 3
DAYS >= .10 3 1.6 1.4 1
DAYS >= .50 0 0.0 0.0 0
DAYS >= 1.00 0 0.0 0.0 0
GREATEST
24 HR. TOTAL 0.30 11/03 TO 11/03 11/21 TO 11/21
SNOWFALL (INCHES)
RECORDS
TOTAL 42.6 1946
TOTALS 4.0 8.7
DEGREE_DAYS
HEATING TOTAL 857 801 56 715
SINCE 7/1 1254 1382 -128 1323
COOLING TOTAL 0 0 0 0
SINCE 1/1 701 769 -68 999
FREEZE DATES
RECORD
EARLIEST 09/08/1962
LATEST 06/08/2007
EARLIEST 10/07
LATEST 05/05
..................................................
WIND (MPH)
AVERAGE WIND SPEED 10.1
RESULTANT WIND SPEED/DIRECTION 3/228
HIGHEST WIND SPEED/DIRECTION 43/040 DATE 11/10
HIGHEST GUST SPEED/DIRECTION 54/040 DATE 11/10
SKY COVER
POSSIBLE SUNSHINE (PERCENT) MM
AVERAGE SKY COVER 0.60
NUMBER OF DAYS FAIR 4
NUMBER OF DAYS PC 21
NUMBER OF DAYS CLOUDY 5
AVERAGE RH (PERCENT) 53
WEATHER CONDITIONS. NUMBER OF DAYS WITH
THUNDERSTORM 1 MIXED PRECIP 1
HEAVY RAIN 1 RAIN 2
LIGHT RAIN 2 FREEZING RAIN 0
LT FREEZING RAIN 0 HAIL 0
HEAVY SNOW 1 SNOW 3
LIGHT SNOW 7 SLEET 0
FOG 8 FOG W/VIS <= 1/4 MILE 1
HAZE 5
- INDICATES NEGATIVE NUMBERS.
R INDICATES RECORD WAS SET OR TIED.
MM INDICATES DATA IS MISSING.
T INDICATES TRACE AMOUNT.
The month of December brings with it the official start of winter and oftentimes, colder and snowier weather conditions. It however can also offer unseasonably warm temperatures and bone dry conditions.
The holiday season is about to kick off with Thanksgiving and with many folks traveling in the coming weeks, the focus is oftentimes on the weather. Looking back at Denver’s historical Thanksgiving weather, we see that the day is usually dry with comfortable temperatures.
The weather during the month of November in Denver metro area can offer just about anything. While it is normally a quiet month, it can be prone to extremes.
As expected, temperatures in the Mile High City today were unseasonably warm and climbed to record-setting levels. However, while Denver broke a high temperature record, Thornton fell quite a ways short.
With the first full month of fall here, October usually brings one of the quietest weather months in the Denver area with plenty of mild, sunny days and clear, cool nights.
Following on a cooler and wetter than normal August, the month of September arrives and one can’t help but wonder if an early fall lies in wait as well. The month can bring our first snow of the season but more often than not, it is one of the most pleasant along the Colorado Front Range.
