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Site News, Thornton Weather

ThorntonWeather.com enters its 20th year of operation

ThorntonWeather.com enters its 20th year of operation. (AI image generated with CoPilot)
ThorntonWeather.com enters its 20th year of operation. (AI image generated with CoPilot)

From a random anniversary gift to becoming Colorado’s longest running independent source for weather news and data. Crazy, eh?

It was 19 years ago on October 25, 2006, that ThorntonWeather.com went live and the first bits of live weather data from our weather station were fed to the Internet.

My wife had gotten me a home weather station for our anniversary a few months earlier. It was fun to be able to see what the weather conditions were right where we lived in Thornton – not DIA or downtown Denver where conditions can be dramatically different.

It didn’t take long though and I soon desired more. I wanted to be able to monitor that weather station from anywhere and thus, with the help of the home weather station community, created the first version of the website.

  • 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.

Word soon got out among residents of the north Denver metro area and traffic to the site boomed. Stories in print media helped spread the word.

We are proud to have become a valuable resource for the community providing real time weather data, forecasts, historical climate information, satellite imagery, webcams and so much more.

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.

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/

Site News

ThorntonWeather.com celebrates its 10th birthday

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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.

Thornton Weather

ThorntonWeather.com weather radio returns to normal operation

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NOAA Weather Radio All HazardsWe are happy to announce that our online weather radio is back up and running.  This is one of our favorite pages on our site as it allows anyone to get current weather, watches, warnings and forecasts direct from the National Weather Service.  It is especially critical when severe weather strikes.  If you haven’t listened in before, check it out here.

Two weeks ago we suffered a failure of the sound card in the computer that powers the radio and had to purchase another – a bit of an unplanned expense.  We occasionally ask for donations to help fund ThorntonWeather.com and many of you have helped generously.

To learn more about how you can help and what our next feature is that we would like to add, follow this link.

Thank you as always for your support!

Thornton Weather

ThorntonWeather.com expands severe weather monitoring capabilities

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ThorntonWeather.com's new Severe Weather Briefing page brings together a variety of severe weather resources and information to help keep residents of the north Denver metro area safe.
ThorntonWeather.com's new Severe Weather Briefing page brings together a variety of severe weather resources and information to help keep residents of the north Denver metro area safe.

Recent tornado outbreaks in other parts of the nation serve as a reminder of the dangers severe weather presents. As Colorado prepares to enter its severe weather season, Thornton’s only true local source for weather information ramps up its severe weather monitoring capabilities.

One of the deadliest tornado outbreaks in U.S. history struck the south last month. Just this past Sunday a tornado that will likely go into the books as the deadliest single twister since 1953 hit Joplin, Missouri. Closer to home, it was just three years ago this week that a massive EF-3 tornado ripped through Windsor, Colorado killing one man and causing millions of dollars in damage.

Severe weather presents a very real threat to residents of Colorado. From flooding rains to hail and of course tornadoes we can and do see it all. This year is the 30th anniversary of the 1981 Thornton tornado, the most destructive tornado to have ever hit the Denver metro area.

  • For all the latest Thornton weather news, follow us on Twitter and ‘like’ us on Facebook.

To help ensure that residents are armed with the news and information needed to keep them and their families safe, ThorntonWeather.com has recently expanded its severe weather products. Residents of the north Denver metro area will find new tools allowing them to monitor the weather in real time as conditions take a turn for the worse.

A new Severe Weather Briefing page on the website provides a one-stop shop for everything severe weather related. The page shows current weather watches and warnings as well as thumbnail images that link to current radar, webcams, a lightning monitor and more.

Also recently added is an Interactive Radar page that supplements ThorntonWeather.com’s existing radar system. The new page allows site visitors to pan around a map and zoom in on any area not only in Colorado but across the nation. Visitors can then see exactly where the severe weather is and where it is headed.

The new pages add to the website’s already substantial severe weather offerings including weather watches and warnings, live NOAA All Hazards Radio, current conditions updated in real-time and much more.

As Thornton’s only true local source for weather, ThorntonWeather.com is dedicated to providing residents with weather information for where they live – not at the airport and not downtown like other news media and weather outlets.

“As a kid the 1981 Thornton tornado sparked my fascination with severe weather,” Tony Hake, owner and operator of ThorntonWeather.com, said. “Adams County and the City of Thornton both lack severe weather warning systems and we are simply trying to fill the gap as best we can. If ThorntonWeather.com can serve a purpose by helping to keep people safe when the weather turns ugly then our mission has been accomplished.”

For More Information:

ThorntonWeather.com is your local source for Thornton weather and weather related news. Provided as a service to the community, ThorntonWeather.com offers real-time weather information, forecasts, radar, statistics and more!

You can also ‘like’ us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.

Story originally submitted and posted on YourHub on Monday, May 23, 2011.

Site News

Join ThorntonWeather.com on Facebook!

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ThorntonWeather.com is now on Facebook! Join us there!
ThorntonWeather.com is now on Facebook! Join us there!

ThorntonWeather.com is pleased to announce the opening of its Facebook fan page.  Now you can stay connected with us and Thornton’s weather on the largest social media site on the Internet!

On our Facebook fan page you will find all the latest weather news and information from your favorite local source for Thornton weather.  And our Facebook page isn’t just another pretty face – it is extremely useful to you. 

Real time weather conditions are updated to the page every three hours.  Forecasts are issued and updated to the site regularly and perhaps most importantly, weather alerts and warnings are posted as they happen in real-time! 

By becoming a fan, you will receive this information right in your regular Facebook news feed.  All of it is there at a glance and ensures that you know what is going on with Thornton’s ever changing weather! 

Click here to visit our fan page on Facebook.  Be sure to click the ‘Become a fan’ button!

And, just a reminder, if you tweet, be sure to follow us on Twitter too.

Site News

Lots of new features including ski reports, live traffic conditions and more

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Ski condition reports are just one of the many new features recently added to ThorntonWeather.com.
Ski condition reports are just one of the many new features recently added to ThorntonWeather.com.

ThorntonWeather.com is just like the Colorado weather – we are constantly changing!  In recent weeks we have added a number of features that we are sure everyone will appreciate from ski condition reports to Denver traffic conditions to national radar and maps.  Some of the new additions include:

  • Added the Colorado Ski Conditions from Colorado Ski Country USA.  It is available under the Live Conditions menu on the left. 
  • Modified the Weather Maps page to start off showing the approaching systems (vice radar).  Also changed the selection menu at the bottom of the page to show regional information on top.
  • Added a National Maps page and menu item under the Radar & Maps menu. 
  • Added a Colorado Road Conditions page with current state highway conditions from CDOT.  Available from the Live Condtions menu on the left.
  • Added a live Denver traffic map from Traffic.com.  Available from the Live Condtions menu on the left.
  • Added a number of national weather maps from the Weather Channel.  These are available under the Radar & Maps menu on the left and include:

For a complete log of site changes, you can view our Website Change Log here.

Do you have a suggestion for something you would like to see us add?  Do you have any other comments, questions or criticisms?  Use the comment feature below and let us know what you think!