We will enjoy one mild day this week and today is it. After this, it goes downhill with unsettled, cooler conditions for the balance.
Today starts out with mostly sunny skies and calm, mild conditions. Temperatures will be climbing to a high of around 73 degrees, a good bit above the average for the date of 64 degrees.
Winds will be a bit breezy this afternoon and the latter part of the afternoon and into the evening brings a chance for showers and thunderstorms. Right now we expect most of these storms to be high-based and bring primarily wind.
Looking ahead, low pressure is going to reign for the balance of the workweek and through the weekend. Temperatures are going to generally be about 10 degrees below normal and each day will feature opportunities for showers, maybe even just a touch of snow even early tomorrow morning and Wednesday morning. Get a complete look at the extended weather forecast here.
Mother Nature played a somewhat cruel trick on the Colorado Front Range. The week started with mild temperatures and a definite feeling of spring in the air. She closed out the week with a significant snowstorm and plenty of cold.
The long-expected storm arrived on the evening of Friday the 15th with rain. Overnight into the early morning of the 16th, the rain continued, heavy at times. In the early morning hours, as temperatures dropped, the rain changed to snow and would continue virtually non-stop through the morning of the 17th.
Thornton’s snowfall totals were certainly at the lower end of what was reported in the Denver metro area. We saw 7.3 inches, much of which melted as fast as it fell. Other locations not far to the west and south were pushing a foot and locations in the foothills and Palmer Divide saw nearly two feet.
The time lapse video begins at midnight on the morning of the 16th and continues through noon on the 17th.
If you’ve ever tried to read the text of just about any National Weather Service product, you likely were struck by the fact it was typed in ALL CAPS. Those days are finally coming to an end as the service ends the shouting and moves to mixed-case letters.
The all capital writing dates back to the days when weather reports were sent via teleprinters. These devices only had the ability to type in all caps. Thankfully, the days of teletype are over and one of our favorite government agencies can now send messages properly.
The change will be begin on May 11 and be gradual, only impacting three of the most common products initially: forecast discussions, public information statements and regional weather summaries.
However, severe weather warnings will make the move to mixed case this summer and other forecast and warning products will follow into 2017.
National Weather Service will stop using all caps in its forecasts Farewell teletype, hello mixed-case characters
April 11, 2016 LISTEN UP! BEGINNING ON MAY 11, NOAA’S NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORECASTS WILL STOP YELLING AT YOU.
New forecast software is allowing the agency to break out of the days when weather reports were sent by “the wire” over teleprinters, which were basically typewriters hooked up to telephone lines. Teleprinters only allowed the use of upper case letters, and while the hardware and software used for weather forecasting has advanced over the last century, this holdover was carried into modern times since some customers still used the old equipment.
Better late than never, but the slow change was not for lack of trying. The National Weather Service has proposed to use mixed-case letters several times since the 1990s, when widespread use of the Internet and email made teletype obsolete. In fact, in web speak, use of capital letters became synonymous with angry shouting. However, it took the next 20 years or so for users of Weather Service products to phase out the last of the old equipment that would only recognize teletype.
Recent software upgrades to the computer system that forecasters use to produce weather predictions, called AWIPS 2 (The Advanced Weather Interactive Processing System), are allowing for the change to mixed-case letters. The switch will happen on May 11, after the required 30-day notification period to give customers adequate time to prepare for the change.
“People are accustomed to reading forecasts in upper case letters and seeing mixed-case use might seem strange at first,” said NWS meteorologist Art Thomas. “It seemed strange to me until I got used to it over the course of testing the new system, but now it seems so normal,” he said.
Three forecast products will transition to mixed-case use on May 11, including area forecast discussions, public information statements and regional weather summaries. Severe weather warnings will transition this summer, with other forecasts and warnings transitioning to the new system through early next year.
Upper case letters in forecasts will not become obsolete – forecasters will have the option to use all capital letters in weather warnings to emphasize threats during extremely dangerous situations. Certain forecast products with international implications, such as aviation and shipping, will continue to use upper case letters, per international agreements that standardize weather product formats across national borders.
Utilizing data from the National Weather Service for the period from 2005 to 2014, research firm WeatherDB analyzed what natural hazards pose the greatest risk to Americans.
Heat comes in as the number one most dangerous natural hazard causing 124 deaths and 980 injuries on average per year. Tornadoes, tropical storms / hurricanes, floods and rip currents round out the top five. Check out all the details below.
The month of March 2016 in Thornton was a bit of a tale of two halves. The first, mild and dry. The second, colder and much, much wetter.
We started out with above normal temperature readings dominating the daily temperatures. In fact 12 of the first 14 days of the month saw high temperatures above average, some well above. Other than a nice bit of rain on the 7th, those first two weeks were dry as well. All were courtesy of strong high pressure staying over the region.
Things cooled down briefly for the next few days and we received a nice bit of snow on the 17th and 18th. However, warm weather returned with back to back 70+ degree days on the 21st and 22nd.
March is however our snowiest month and Mother Nature delivered a walloping reminder of that on the 23rd. Blizzard conditions arrived early in the morning and persisted through the day. Schools and businesses shuttered as did the airport and major interstates.
Cool, unsettled weather conditions finished out the month. Another, light show of snow came on the 26th followed by flurries on the 31st.
Thornton’s overall average temperature for March was 41.4 degrees. This was very close to Denver’s official measurement of 41.6 degrees as taken out at DIA. The average monthly temperature for March is 40.4 degrees.
Thornton saw a maximum mercury reading of 72.4 degrees on the 21st and a low of 13.5 degrees on the 24th. Out at the airport, Denver saw its highest reading of 74 degrees on the 11th and a low of 10 degrees on the 24th.
In terms of precipitation, rain and snow combined to bring Thornton a wet 3.21 inches. The long term average for Denver in March is 0.92 inches.
Denver’s automated system claims a mere 0.90 inches of liquid precipitation at the airport. It is clear that they had a very incorrect reading from the blizzard on the 23rd. Their climate report for the month makes the note, “the precipitation for March 23rd is too low due to undercatch from blizzard. This value is under review. This could change the values below.”
Snowfall was abundant for the month and far exceeded the average of 10.7 inches for Denver. Here in Thornton we received 30.1 inches – our second highest monthly total in 10 years. The airport lagged considerably due to their location out in the middle of nowhere with 18.4 inches.
Thornton, Colorado’s March 2016 temperature summary. (ThorntonWeather.com)Thornton, Colorado’s March 2016 precipitation summary. (ThorntonWeather.com)
From the National Weather Service:
CLIMATE REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DENVER/BOULDER CO
1255 PM MDT FRI APR 1 2016
...................................
...THE DENVER CO CLIMATE SUMMARY FOR THE MONTH OF MARCH 2016...
CLIMATE NORMAL PERIOD 1981 TO 2010
CLIMATE RECORD PERIOD 1872 TO 2016
WEATHER OBSERVED NORMAL DEPART LAST YEAR`S
VALUE DATE(S) VALUE FROM VALUE DATE(S)
NORMAL
................................................................
TEMPERATURE (F)
RECORD
HIGH 84 03/26/1971
LOW -11 03/28/1886
HIGHEST 74 03/11 73 1 81 03/16
LOWEST 10 03/24 11 -1 2 03/05
AVG. MAXIMUM 54.9 54.4 0.5 58.9
AVG. MINIMUM 28.3 26.4 1.9 31.2
MEAN 41.6 40.4 1.2 45.0
DAYS MAX >= 90 0 0.0 0.0 0
DAYS MAX <= 32 1 1.9 -0.9 2
DAYS MIN <= 32 21 23.6 -2.6 12
DAYS MIN <= 0 0 0.1 -0.1 0
PRECIPITATION (INCHES)
RECORD
MAXIMUM 4.56 1983
MINIMUM 0.03 2012
*THE PRECIPITATION FOR MARCH 23RD IS TOO LOW DUE TO UNDERCATCH
FROM BLIZZARD. THIS VALUE IS UNDER REVIEW. THIS COULD CHANGE
THE VALUES BELOW.
TOTALS 0.90* 0.92 -0.02* 0.79
DAILY AVG. 0.03* 0.03 0.00* 0.03
DAYS >= .01 9 5.9 3.1 5
DAYS >= .10 2 2.4 -0.4 3
DAYS >= .50 0 0.3 -0.3 0
DAYS >= 1.00 0* 0.1 -0.1* 0
GREATEST
24 HR. TOTAL 0.49* 03/23 TO 03/23 03/19 TO 03/19
SNOWFALL (INCHES)
RECORDS
TOTAL 18.4 10.7
RECORD MARCH 35.2 2003
DEGREE_DAYS
HEATING TOTAL 716 763 -47 611
SINCE 7/1 4704 5202 -498 4724
COOLING TOTAL 0 0 0 0
SINCE 1/1 0 0 0 0
FREEZE DATES
RECORD
EARLIEST 09/08/1962
LATEST 06/08/2007
EARLIEST 10/07
LATEST 05/05
..........................................................
WIND (MPH)
AVERAGE WIND SPEED 11.7
RESULTANT WIND SPEED/DIRECTION 3/238
HIGHEST WIND SPEED/DIRECTION 53/340 DATE 03/23
HIGHEST GUST SPEED/DIRECTION 59/340 DATE 03/23
SKY COVER
POSSIBLE SUNSHINE (PERCENT) MM
AVERAGE SKY COVER 0.60
NUMBER OF DAYS FAIR 3
NUMBER OF DAYS PC 20
NUMBER OF DAYS CLOUDY 8
AVERAGE RH (PERCENT) 48
WEATHER CONDITIONS. NUMBER OF DAYS WITH
THUNDERSTORM 1 MIXED PRECIP 0
HEAVY RAIN 0 RAIN 0
LIGHT RAIN 4 FREEZING RAIN 0
LT FREEZING RAIN 0 HAIL 1
HEAVY SNOW 1 SNOW 4
LIGHT SNOW 8 SLEET 0
FOG 11 FOG W/VIS <= 1/4 MILE 2
HAZE 3
- INDICATES NEGATIVE NUMBERS.
R INDICATES RECORD WAS SET OR TIED.
MM INDICATES DATA IS MISSING.
T INDICATES TRACE AMOUNT.
April marks a transition between winter and summer for most of the country but for Denver it is especially true as we can see a stunning variety of weather.
The proverbial April showers are certainly a possibility for Denver. Snow? Tornadoes? Thunderstorms? You bet – all can happen!
For good measure throw in a chance for hail and even dust storms and April gives every type of weather condition you could like – or hate.
We may not have received any real snow the last two days but it is hard to complain when you consider just how much we have received this season.
Thus far Thornton has recorded 76.0 inches snowfall, the second highest seasonal total since we came online 10 years ago. Those numbers are likely to get higher as snow in April is almost certain and snow in May would not be unusual.
Out at DIA where Denver’s official totals are kept, 57.2 inches has been received. The Mile High City’s long term average (1882-2015) is 57.1 inches.
Beautiful reflections close out the first day of March 2016. (David Canfield)
The month of March is the start of meteorological spring and while conditions do begin warming, winter weather is certainly out of the question. From hot to cold, snow to rain, the conditions can be very conducive to great pictures as we see in our slideshow.
March in Denver typically means frequent and rapid weather changes. The days grow longer and we start enjoying more sunshine and sometimes summer-like weather. However, on occasion arctic air masses can still force their way south into Colorado dropping temperatures quickly and markedly.
With the active wildlife, increased outdoor activities by us humans, and of course the weather, March imagery contains a wide variety of subjects and extremes.
Slideshow updated March 31, 2016. To learn more about how to send your photo to us for inclusion in the slideshow, see below the slideshow.
Showcasing images captured by ThorntonWeather.com readers as well as some of our own, our monthly slideshow covers the entire gamut of weather-related imagery.
Sunsets, sunrises, wildlife and of course every type of weather condition are vividly depicted in images captured from yours and our cameras.
[flickr_set id=”72157665126811690″]
What is missing in the slideshow above? Your photo!
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.
Thornton’s Tuesday looks to be a relatively pleasant day with mild temps but with some cloud cover. We also will see a return to wintry weather tonight through tomorrow although it won’t be anything too dramatic.
For today we start with partly sunny skies and we will see a good little bit of cloud cover throughout the day, increasing in the afternoon. Temperatures will be climbing to a pleasant high of 63 degrees.
The next storm system starts making itself felt this afternoon although for the most part, its effects will be limited in our area as it will be mainly to our north. We do see a slight chance for some thunderstorms and shower activity from about 3:00pm through midnight tonight.
As temperatures drop overnight, light snow will be possible in the early morning hours through much of the day tomorrow. Accumulations will be quite light though, perhaps an inch or two for the entire event. The good news is that while temperatures will be cool for the balance of the workweek, they will rebound nicely for the weekend. Get the extended weather forecast here.
The morning of March 23, 2016 saw the blizzard hit with full force. (ThorntonWeather.com)
It is hard to believe so much snow can fall over such a short period of time. Over just more than 12 hours Thornton received 21.7 inches – our biggest snowstorm since 2006. Our east facing webcam captured all the action from start to finish.
The video below starts at midnight on the 23rd with dry conditions. By about 2:00am rain falls but that quickly transitions to snow.
It is after daybreak that the storm gets started in earnest and the heavy snowfall almost entirely obscures the view at points. As is typical in Colorado, by mid-afternoon, we actually start to see some blue skies.
The video covers 19 hours in about 39 seconds. There are a few ‘hiccups’ in the video that you might notice. These were when we had brief power outages.
Weather, natural disasters & climate news and information.
