{"id":9206,"date":"2019-06-03T14:02:56","date_gmt":"2019-06-03T20:02:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.coloradofloodthreat.com\/?p=9206"},"modified":"2019-06-06T11:29:05","modified_gmt":"2019-06-06T17:29:05","slug":"fto-06-03-2019-the-upper-level-low-travels-south-of-colorado-returning-the-flood-threat-by-mid-week","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive-coftb.dewberryanalytics.com\/?p=9206","title":{"rendered":"FTO 06-03-2019: The Upper Level Low Travels South of Colorado Returning the Flood Threat by Mid-Week"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Issue Date: Monday, June 3rd, 2019<br>\nIssue Time: 2:15PM MDT<br>\nValid Dates: 6\/4 &ndash; 6\/18<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/archive-coftb.dewberryanalytics.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/FTO_20190603.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-9207\" src=\"https:\/\/archive-coftb.dewberryanalytics.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/FTO_20190603.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"880\" height=\"153\"\/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>The water vapor imagery below continues to show a bit of a split pattern with the polar <span class=\"glossaryLink\" aria-describedby=\"tt\" data-cmtooltip=\"&lt;div class=glossaryItemTitle&gt;jet stream&lt;\/div&gt;&lt;div class=glossaryItemBody&gt;Relatively strong winds concentrated within a narrow stream in the atmosphere. General weather patterns are related closely to the position, strength and orientation of the jet stream.&lt;\/div&gt;\" data-gt-translate-attributes='[{\"attribute\":\"data-cmtooltip\", \"format\":\"html\"}]'>jet stream<\/span> well to our north. Currently, the upper level <span class=\"glossaryLink\" aria-describedby=\"tt\" data-cmtooltip=\"&lt;div class=glossaryItemTitle&gt;cutoff low&lt;\/div&gt;&lt;div class=glossaryItemBody&gt;&amp;lt;!-- wp:paragraph {&amp;quot;textColor&amp;quot;:&amp;quot;white&amp;quot;} --&amp;gt;\n&amp;lt;p class=&amp;quot;has-white-color has-text-color&amp;quot;&amp;gt;an upper-level low pressure system that has been &amp;quot;cut off&rdquo; from the prevailing winds that steer weather systems; cut-off lows typically become stationary or move very slowly, bringing prolonged periods of unsettled weather&amp;lt;\/p&amp;gt;\n&amp;lt;!-- \/wp:paragraph --&amp;gt;&lt;\/div&gt;\" data-gt-translate-attributes='[{\"attribute\":\"data-cmtooltip\", \"format\":\"html\"}]'>cutoff low<\/span> (Event #1 from the last FTO) is over southern California. This nearly stationary feature has been brining on and off moisture into the area and allowing some more seasonable and warm temperatures to build across state. By Wednesday, the low begins to move east into Arizona and then New Mexico. The plume of moisture east of the green line below will begin to be pulled back west and increase the chances for rainfall (statewide) by Wednesday. After the low passes through the area, there will be a lull in precipitation with only <span class=\"glossaryLink\" aria-describedby=\"tt\" data-cmtooltip=\"&lt;div class=glossaryItemTitle&gt;scattered&lt;\/div&gt;&lt;div class=glossaryItemBody&gt;25-40% areal coverage&lt;\/div&gt;\" data-gt-translate-attributes='[{\"attribute\":\"data-cmtooltip\", \"format\":\"html\"}]'>scattered<\/span> afternoon showers expected over the higher terrains. By Sunday, Event #2 begins as the low near the Gulf of Alaska brushes the northern border of Colorado as it navigates to the east. Still not a lot of confidence in the exact placement of the upper <span class=\"glossaryLink\" aria-describedby=\"tt\" data-cmtooltip=\"&lt;div class=glossaryItemTitle&gt;trough&lt;\/div&gt;&lt;div class=glossaryItemBody&gt;An elongated area of relatively low atmospheric pressure; the opposite of a ridge.&lt;\/div&gt;\" data-gt-translate-attributes='[{\"attribute\":\"data-cmtooltip\", \"format\":\"html\"}]'>trough<\/span>, but an increase the amount of low level moisture is forecast behind the passage of a cold front on Saturday night. With swift storm movement and abundant low-level moisture missing, there is No Apparent Threat at this time.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/archive-coftb.dewberryanalytics.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/wv_20190603-1.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-9208\" src=\"https:\/\/archive-coftb.dewberryanalytics.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/wv_20190603-1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"700\" height=\"444\"\/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Above average <span class=\"glossaryLink\"  aria-describedby=\"tt\"  data-cmtooltip=\"&lt;div class=glossaryItemTitle&gt;PW&lt;\/div&gt;&lt;div class=glossaryItemBody&gt;(Stands for: Precipitable Water) The total atmospheric water vapor contained in a vertical column of the atmosphere. It is typically measured in inches, and anomalously (deviation from normal) high values of precipitable water generally correlate to heavy rainfall potential.&lt;\/div&gt;\"  data-gt-translate-attributes='[{\"attribute\":\"data-cmtooltip\", \"format\":\"html\"}]'>PW<\/span> values are forecast by the GEFS for Denver through next week (left). As the low approaches from the west, <span class=\"glossaryLink\"  aria-describedby=\"tt\"  data-cmtooltip=\"&lt;div class=glossaryItemTitle&gt;PW&lt;\/div&gt;&lt;div class=glossaryItemBody&gt;(Stands for: Precipitable Water) The total atmospheric water vapor contained in a vertical column of the atmosphere. It is typically measured in inches, and anomalously (deviation from normal) high values of precipitable water generally correlate to heavy rainfall potential.&lt;\/div&gt;\"  data-gt-translate-attributes='[{\"attribute\":\"data-cmtooltip\", \"format\":\"html\"}]'>PW<\/span> peaks on Wednesday. While the amount of instability may be limited during the passage of the upper low (less of a severe threat), higher <span class=\"glossaryLink\"  aria-describedby=\"tt\"  data-cmtooltip=\"&lt;div class=glossaryItemTitle&gt;PW&lt;\/div&gt;&lt;div class=glossaryItemBody&gt;(Stands for: Precipitable Water) The total atmospheric water vapor contained in a vertical column of the atmosphere. It is typically measured in inches, and anomalously (deviation from normal) high values of precipitable water generally correlate to heavy rainfall potential.&lt;\/div&gt;\"  data-gt-translate-attributes='[{\"attribute\":\"data-cmtooltip\", \"format\":\"html\"}]'>PW<\/span> and slow storm movement may cause some flooding issues, especially over recent burn scars. There is then a sharp decrease in moisture before the next system arrives at the beginning of next week. This should drop the chances for afternoon rainfall into next weekend and limit the majority of the storm activity to the mountains. To the west, <span class=\"glossaryLink\"  aria-describedby=\"tt\"  data-cmtooltip=\"&lt;div class=glossaryItemTitle&gt;PW&lt;\/div&gt;&lt;div class=glossaryItemBody&gt;(Stands for: Precipitable Water) The total atmospheric water vapor contained in a vertical column of the atmosphere. It is typically measured in inches, and anomalously (deviation from normal) high values of precipitable water generally correlate to heavy rainfall potential.&lt;\/div&gt;\"  data-gt-translate-attributes='[{\"attribute\":\"data-cmtooltip\", \"format\":\"html\"}]'>PW<\/span> values are about average until drier air moves in with more westerly flow after Event #1. There is also a slight increase on Wednesday as the low moves into the area, which may pose a threat for the 416 burn area. Again, this is mostly due to slow storm motion, which will allow more rain to accumulate than usual. Confidence in details this far out is on the lower end, so please tune back into the FTB on Wednesday morning for updated details.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/archive-coftb.dewberryanalytics.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/PW_20190603.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-9209\" src=\"https:\/\/archive-coftb.dewberryanalytics.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/PW_20190603.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"880\" height=\"299\"\/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Well you&rsquo;re right if you were thinking May felt awfully cold and rainy. The majority of the state, excluding portions of the Southeast Plains, had above average precipitation. A good portion of western Colorado had much above average precipitation putting it in the 90<sup>th<\/sup> percentile. While southwest Colorado only received 0.75 to 1.5 inches above climatology, that value equates to over 200% of normal. Portions of the Southeast Plains were 0.75 to 1 inch below average, which is about 50% of normal. This continuation of above average precipitation for the Water Year actually eliminated the drought, which is the first time that has ever happened since the Drought Monitor was created in 2000. As far as temperatures, the far northeast corner of the state and pockets of the Southwest Slope were the coldest on record. Statewide, Colorado was in the bottom 10% of May temperature rankings. The colder temperatures extended the life of the snowpack at higher elevations, but warm temperatures last week into this week should start to melt a good portion of the snowpack.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/archive-coftb.dewberryanalytics.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/may_prcp.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-9210\" src=\"https:\/\/archive-coftb.dewberryanalytics.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/may_prcp.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"650\" height=\"548\"\/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/archive-coftb.dewberryanalytics.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/may_temp.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-9211\" src=\"https:\/\/archive-coftb.dewberryanalytics.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/may_temp.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"650\" height=\"438\"\/><\/a><\/p>\n<h4><strong>Snowpack:<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p>The long stretch of warm weather continues, and a large chunk of the snowpack has melted over the last week. This has led to bankfull conditions and minor flooding over smaller rivers within the southern San Juans that drain into the San Luis Valley region. Expect minor flooding to continue throughout this week though there may be a brief break in <span class=\"glossaryLink\" aria-describedby=\"tt\" data-cmtooltip=\"&lt;div class=glossaryItemTitle&gt;widespread&lt;\/div&gt;&lt;div class=glossaryItemBody&gt;greater than 60% areal coverage&lt;\/div&gt;\" data-gt-translate-attributes='[{\"attribute\":\"data-cmtooltip\", \"format\":\"html\"}]'>widespread<\/span> melting on Wednesday and Thursday as cooler temperatures accompany the upper low. Elsewhere, large rivers continue to rise, but should still remain below Action stage through this week. With warm temperatures remaining in the forecast, smaller rivers and streams will likely fill to bankfull and minor flooding is possible by the end of this week. The Mancos River near Mancos is in Action stage and is expected to remain here through the rest of this week with minor flooding of low-lying areas possible. Please tune into the daily FTB for the latest details on flooding.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>Event #1: <\/strong><strong>Tuesday<\/strong><strong> (6\/<\/strong><strong>4<\/strong><strong>) &ndash; Thursday (6\/6)<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><strong><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">No Apparent Threat<\/span>\/<\/strong><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">Elevated Threat<\/span>&nbsp;<\/strong><em>as a <span class=\"glossaryLink\" aria-describedby=\"tt\" data-cmtooltip=\"&lt;div class=glossaryItemTitle&gt;cutoff low&lt;\/div&gt;&lt;div class=glossaryItemBody&gt;&amp;lt;!-- wp:paragraph {&amp;quot;textColor&amp;quot;:&amp;quot;white&amp;quot;} --&amp;gt;\n&amp;lt;p class=&amp;quot;has-white-color has-text-color&amp;quot;&amp;gt;an upper-level low pressure system that has been &amp;quot;cut off&rdquo; from the prevailing winds that steer weather systems; cut-off lows typically become stationary or move very slowly, bringing prolonged periods of unsettled weather&amp;lt;\/p&amp;gt;\n&amp;lt;!-- \/wp:paragraph --&amp;gt;&lt;\/div&gt;\" data-gt-translate-attributes='[{\"attribute\":\"data-cmtooltip\", \"format\":\"html\"}]'>cutoff low<\/span> moves east and passes Colorado to the south.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>The upper level low finally begins to move east this week. <span class=\"glossaryLink\"  aria-describedby=\"tt\"  data-cmtooltip=\"&lt;div class=glossaryItemTitle&gt;PW&lt;\/div&gt;&lt;div class=glossaryItemBody&gt;(Stands for: Precipitable Water) The total atmospheric water vapor contained in a vertical column of the atmosphere. It is typically measured in inches, and anomalously (deviation from normal) high values of precipitable water generally correlate to heavy rainfall potential.&lt;\/div&gt;\"  data-gt-translate-attributes='[{\"attribute\":\"data-cmtooltip\", \"format\":\"html\"}]'>PW<\/span> peaks as it passes through Arizona and New Mexico on Wednesday. This should bring <span class=\"glossaryLink\" aria-describedby=\"tt\" data-cmtooltip=\"&lt;div class=glossaryItemTitle&gt;widespread&lt;\/div&gt;&lt;div class=glossaryItemBody&gt;greater than 60% areal coverage&lt;\/div&gt;\" data-gt-translate-attributes='[{\"attribute\":\"data-cmtooltip\", \"format\":\"html\"}]'>widespread<\/span> showers to the state and cooler temperatures. Without a ton of instability building (with the exception of the far northeast corner of the state), rainfall will be more gradual. However, slow storm motion will create an Elevated flood threat with burn scars particularly susceptible to flooding. Small creeks and rivers will also start to approach bankfull with minor flooding possible by the end of this week. Major riverine flooding is not forecast though river levels will continue to rise.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/archive-coftb.dewberryanalytics.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/FTO_20190603_e1.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-9243\" src=\"https:\/\/archive-coftb.dewberryanalytics.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/FTO_20190603_e1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"880\" height=\"498\"\/><\/a><\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/archive-coftb.dewberryanalytics.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/Legend.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-230\" src=\"https:\/\/archive-coftb.dewberryanalytics.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/Legend.png\" alt=\"Legend\" width=\"94\" height=\"158\"\/><\/a><\/p>\n<h3><strong>Event #2: <\/strong><strong>Sunday<\/strong><strong> (<\/strong><strong>6\/9<\/strong><strong>) &ndash; <\/strong><strong>Mon<\/strong><strong>day (6\/<\/strong><strong>10<\/strong><strong>)<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><strong><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">No Apparent Threat<\/span>&nbsp;<\/strong><em>as a quick moving upper level system brushes the northern Colorado border and brings cooler temperatures to start the week. &nbsp;<\/em><\/p>\n<p>The polar <span class=\"glossaryLink\" aria-describedby=\"tt\" data-cmtooltip=\"&lt;div class=glossaryItemTitle&gt;jet stream&lt;\/div&gt;&lt;div class=glossaryItemBody&gt;Relatively strong winds concentrated within a narrow stream in the atmosphere. General weather patterns are related closely to the position, strength and orientation of the jet stream.&lt;\/div&gt;\" data-gt-translate-attributes='[{\"attribute\":\"data-cmtooltip\", \"format\":\"html\"}]'>jet stream<\/span> dips south for the next event and will brush the northern border of Colorado. Due to the fast motion of the system and lack of low level moisture, <span class=\"glossaryLink\" aria-describedby=\"tt\" data-cmtooltip=\"&lt;div class=glossaryItemTitle&gt;widespread&lt;\/div&gt;&lt;div class=glossaryItemBody&gt;greater than 60% areal coverage&lt;\/div&gt;\" data-gt-translate-attributes='[{\"attribute\":\"data-cmtooltip\", \"format\":\"html\"}]'>widespread<\/span> flooding is not forecast. A cold front on Saturday night will help drop temperatures and return low level moisture over eastern Colorado on Sunday. Therefore, there is an uptick in thunderstorm activity forecast over the mountains on Sunday afternoon. By Monday, residual moisture will likely spark another round of <span class=\"glossaryLink\" aria-describedby=\"tt\" data-cmtooltip=\"&lt;div class=glossaryItemTitle&gt;isolated&lt;\/div&gt;&lt;div class=glossaryItemBody&gt;less than 10% areal coverage&lt;\/div&gt;\" data-gt-translate-attributes='[{\"attribute\":\"data-cmtooltip\", \"format\":\"html\"}]'>isolated<\/span> afternoon storms over the mountains, but at this time, there is No Apparent flood threat.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/archive-coftb.dewberryanalytics.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/FTO_20190603_e2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-9244\" src=\"https:\/\/archive-coftb.dewberryanalytics.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/FTO_20190603_e2.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"880\" height=\"496\"\/><\/a><\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/archive-coftb.dewberryanalytics.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/Legend.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-230\" src=\"https:\/\/archive-coftb.dewberryanalytics.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/Legend.png\" alt=\"Legend\" width=\"94\" height=\"158\"\/><\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Issue Date: Monday, June 3rd, 2019 Issue Time: 2:15PM MDT Valid Dates: 6\/4 &ndash; 6\/18 The water vapor imagery below continues to show a bit of a split pattern with the polar <span class=\"glossaryLink\" aria-describedby=\"tt\" data-cmtooltip=\"&lt;div class=glossaryItemTitle&gt;jet stream&lt;\/div&gt;&lt;div class=glossaryItemBody&gt;Relatively strong winds concentrated within a narrow stream in the atmosphere. General weather patterns are related closely to the position, strength and orientation of the jet stream.&lt;\/div&gt;\" data-gt-translate-attributes='[{\"attribute\":\"data-cmtooltip\", \"format\":\"html\"}]'>jet stream<\/span> well to our north. Currently, the upper level <span class=\"glossaryLink\" aria-describedby=\"tt\" data-cmtooltip=\"&lt;div class=glossaryItemTitle&gt;cutoff low&lt;\/div&gt;&lt;div class=glossaryItemBody&gt;&amp;lt;!-- wp:paragraph {&amp;quot;textColor&amp;quot;:&amp;quot;white&amp;quot;} --&amp;gt;\n&amp;lt;p class=&amp;quot;has-white-color has-text-color&amp;quot;&amp;gt;an upper-level low pressure system that has been &amp;quot;cut off&rdquo; from the prevailing winds that steer weather systems; cut-off lows typically become stationary or move very slowly, bringing prolonged periods of unsettled weather&amp;lt;\/p&amp;gt;\n&amp;lt;!-- \/wp:paragraph --&amp;gt;&lt;\/div&gt;\" data-gt-translate-attributes='[{\"attribute\":\"data-cmtooltip\", \"format\":\"html\"}]'>cutoff low<\/span> (Event #1 from the last FTO) is over southern California. This [&hellip;]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[3],"tags":[],"post_mailing_queue_ids":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive-coftb.dewberryanalytics.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9206"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive-coftb.dewberryanalytics.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive-coftb.dewberryanalytics.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive-coftb.dewberryanalytics.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive-coftb.dewberryanalytics.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=9206"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/archive-coftb.dewberryanalytics.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9206\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9246,"href":"https:\/\/archive-coftb.dewberryanalytics.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9206\/revisions\/9246"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive-coftb.dewberryanalytics.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9206"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive-coftb.dewberryanalytics.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=9206"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive-coftb.dewberryanalytics.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=9206"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}