SPM 05-30-2019: High Temperatures Drop back Down with Widespread Showers over Northern Colorado

Issue Date: Thursday, May 30th, 2019
Issue Time: 9:25AM MDT

Summary:

A vorticity max slid south over western Colorado yesterday as the low pressure exited the region to the east. In its wake, cool temperatures blanketed the state and kept the plains stable. Scattered storms popped over the mountains during the late morning into the afternoon with diurnal flow. The mid-level energy helped increase coverage of storms causing the eastern Central Mountains and southern Front Range near the Divide to receive the bulk of the precipitation. Radar estimates were generally in the 0.25 to 0.9 inch range with the Hoosier Pass SNOTEL station recording 1 inch. Over 10K feet, precipitation still fell as snow, but accumulations were on the low end. Leadville report 2.1 inches this morning, which is about a 10:1 snow to precipitation ratio. Storms moved into the adjacent plains over the Palmer and Raton Ridges during the late afternoon, but totals were under 0.1 inches with accumulations mostly west of I-25. Activity ended a few hours after sundown, and flooding was not reported.

To see estimated precipitation totals over your area yesterday, 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.