SPM 06-21-2020: Plenty of Sunshine to Go Around

June 21, 2020 by ·

Issue Date: Sunday, June 21st, 2020
Issue Time: 9:00 AM MDT

Summary:

Colorado spent the first day of Summer in Colorado basking in plenty of sunshine, which is great for those of us who were able to spend some time outdoors, but a little tough for those of us who are supposed to write about rainfall. All jokes aside, it was a pleasant day statewide, with mid- and high-level moisture only able to muster up increasing clouds during the evening and overnight hours.

Flooding was not reported on Friday. For rainfall estimates in your area, check out our State Precipitation Map below.

Click Here For Map Overview

The map below shows radar-estimated, rainfall gage-adjusted Quantitative Precipitation Estimates (QPE) across Colorado. The map is updated daily during the operational season (May 1 – Sep 30) by 11AM. The following six layers are currently available: 24-hour, 48-hour and 72-hour total precipitation, as well as maximum 1-hour, 2-hour and 6-hour precipitation over the past 24 hour period (to estimate where flash flooding may have occurred). The 24-hour, 48-hour and 72-hour total precipitation contain bias corrections that are not disaggregated into the hourly estimates, so there will likely be some differences. The accumulation ending time is 7AM of the date shown in the bottom right corner. Also shown optionally are vulnerable fire burn areas (post 2012), which are updated throughout the season to include new, vulnerable burn areas. The home button in the top left corner resets the map to the original zoom.
Filed Under: State Precipitation Map ·

SPM 06-20-2020: Widespread Showers and Thunderstorms East of the Divide

June 20, 2020 by ·

Issue Date: Saturday, June 20th, 2020
Issue Time: 9:00 AM MDT

Summary:

It was another cool day across Colorado thanks to an upper-level disturbance swinging across the state. West of the Continental Divide, the disturbance provided enough support for scattered showers/weak thunderstorms. East of the Divide, enhanced moisture provided the fuel for widespread showers and thunderstorms; a few storms were strong, especially over the Southeastern Plains and Raton Mesa, where copious amounts of small hail were reported from one supercell in particular that rumbled along the NM/CO border. The only severe storm report coming from 7 miles North of Brandon (Kiowa County) where 1.75-inch diameter hail was reported. As far as rainfall reports are concerned, the following “top reports” come from CoCoRaHS observers (as of 7:15 AM):

0.74 inches: Las Animas County
0.59 inches: Weld County
0.50 inches: El Paso County
0.49 inches: Boulder County
0.43 inches: Kit Carson County
0.41 inches: Lincoln County

Flooding was not reported on Friday. For rainfall estimates in your area, check out our State Precipitation Map below.

Click Here For Map Overview

The map below shows radar-estimated, rainfall gage-adjusted Quantitative Precipitation Estimates (QPE) across Colorado. The map is updated daily during the operational season (May 1 – Sep 30) by 11AM. The following six layers are currently available: 24-hour, 48-hour and 72-hour total precipitation, as well as maximum 1-hour, 2-hour and 6-hour precipitation over the past 24 hour period (to estimate where flash flooding may have occurred). The 24-hour, 48-hour and 72-hour total precipitation contain bias corrections that are not disaggregated into the hourly estimates, so there will likely be some differences. The accumulation ending time is 7AM of the date shown in the bottom right corner. Also shown optionally are vulnerable fire burn areas (post 2012), which are updated throughout the season to include new, vulnerable burn areas. The home button in the top left corner resets the map to the original zoom.
Filed Under: State Precipitation Map ·

SPM 06-19-2020: Wetting Rain for the Front Range and Heavy Evening/Overnight Rainfall for the Raton Ridge

June 19, 2020 by ·

Issue Date: Friday, June 19th, 2020
Issue Time: 10:25AM MDT

Summary:

After the passage of a cold front, temperatures dropped off quite a bit over the state. Below is from the Weather Prediction Center (WPC) and shows the 24-hour change from 4PM on Wednesday to 4PM on Thursday (yesterday). The effects of the front were much stronger over eastern Colorado, and over the Front Range, a couple of the stations showed a 30F swing! The interesting part of the map is over the northwest corner where temperatures actually increased. This was likely to the front already passing through prior to the rest of the state on Wednesday and the timeframe used to create this image.

Moisture also returned behind the front, so storms returned to the mountains. Over western Colorado, a lot of the moisture was scoured out, so totals over the Central and Northern Mountains were under 0.10 inches. The heaviest rainfall was over the Front Range, which started early in the morning. Rainfall was gradual enough that flooding issues were avoided. Up to 1.5 inches of rain were estimated by radar in Jefferson County, and an ALERT gage near Coal Creek recorded 1.26 inches. The Jackwhacker Gulch (best name ever) SNOTEL gage recorded 0.80 inches near Montezuma, CO.

Additional rainfall fell over the Southeast Plains in the evening and overnight. A severe thunderstorm near Hoehne, CO produced 1-inch hail around 10PM and a gust of 67 mph. Totals were generally in the 0.50 to 0.75 inch range over the area. The Perry Stokes airport ASOS showed about 2 inches of rainfall in a 1-hour period, which means there was a lot of moisture in the area for limited instability (after the sunset). Heavy rainfall also developed overnight along the Raton Ridge, and 3 inches of rain was reported near Trinidad along with street flooding around 1:30AM. Other places in the storms’ paths received around 2.50 inches for the 24-hour period. So my best guess for overnight 1-hour rainfall rates is ~1.75 inches. Wowza!

For precipitation estimates in your neighborhood over the last 24-hours, scroll down to the State Precipitation Map below.

Click Here For Map Overview

The map below shows radar-estimated, rainfall gage-adjusted Quantitative Precipitation Estimates (QPE) across Colorado. The map is updated daily during the operational season (May 1 – Sep 30) by 11AM. The following six layers are currently available: 24-hour, 48-hour and 72-hour total precipitation, as well as maximum 1-hour, 2-hour and 6-hour precipitation over the past 24 hour period (to estimate where flash flooding may have occurred). The 24-hour, 48-hour and 72-hour total precipitation contain bias corrections that are not disaggregated into the hourly estimates, so there will likely be some differences. The accumulation ending time is 7AM of the date shown in the bottom right corner. Also shown optionally are vulnerable fire burn areas (post 2012), which are updated throughout the season to include new, vulnerable burn areas. The home button in the top left corner resets the map to the original zoom.

Filed Under: State Precipitation Map ·

SPM 06-18-2020: Elevated Fire Weather Before a Cold Front Surged South

June 18, 2020 by ·

Issue Date: Thursday, June 18th, 2020
Issue Time: 10:40AM MDT

Summary:

It was another dry and windy day with critical fire weather across the majority of the state. The haze really filled in yesterday as well with the ongoing inversion trapping and accumulating the smoke from the wildfires. The East Canyon fire expanded some more – the latest on the fire can be found on Twitter under the handle @EastCanyonFire. It was too dry for any rainfall, although some sprinkles may have occurred over the western Palmer Ridge. Highs along the I-25 corridor tied daily records with many places within a few degrees of the record daily high. It got breezy as the cold front moved through, but that also helped get rid of a lot of the smoke. A 62 mph gust was measured in Cheyenne County at 6:25PM when the front surged south. The cooler temperatures felt great overnight into this morning and will help reduce fire danger today.

For precipitation estimates in your neighborhood over the last 24 to 72-hours, scroll down to the State Precipitation Map below.

Click Here For Map Overview

The map below shows radar-estimated, rainfall gage-adjusted Quantitative Precipitation Estimates (QPE) across Colorado. The map is updated daily during the operational season (May 1 – Sep 30) by 11AM. The following six layers are currently available: 24-hour, 48-hour and 72-hour total precipitation, as well as maximum 1-hour, 2-hour and 6-hour precipitation over the past 24 hour period (to estimate where flash flooding may have occurred). The 24-hour, 48-hour and 72-hour total precipitation contain bias corrections that are not disaggregated into the hourly estimates, so there will likely be some differences. The accumulation ending time is 7AM of the date shown in the bottom right corner. Also shown optionally are vulnerable fire burn areas (post 2012), which are updated throughout the season to include new, vulnerable burn areas. The home button in the top left corner resets the map to the original zoom.

Filed Under: State Precipitation Map ·
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