Warm and sunny weather returns after a cold start to the week
Sunday, November 11, 2018
The light snow falling in Steamboat Springs this Sunday won’t accumulate to much, but a reinforcing surge of cold and dry air tonight means a cold start to the work week before warmer and sunnier weather returns.
Currently, a large trough of cold air sits over much of the United States, save for a ridge of high pressure over the West Coast, where hot and dry weather and the seasonal easterly Santa Anna winds have fueled extreme wildfire behavior in California. This weather pattern will bring a cold front through Colorado later today with another windy day in California before incoming Pacific energy forces the ridge of high pressure eastward.
The cold front means a quite cold Monday with both low and high temperature around twenty degrees below our average low of 18 F and average high of 46 F, despite the presence of sun. A clear Monday night will once again keep similar low temperatures around for Tuesday morning before the flattening ridge of high pressure moves towards our area, with some warming at low elevations during the day but more at higher elevations.
Continued sun and warmer temperatures with both highs and lows around average are advertised for Wednesday before some energy traveling over the top of the ridge mixes with some cold air from the Canadian Plains and clips northern Colorado on Thursday. This probably will not affect temperatures much, but we may see some clouds and breezy northwest winds.
The ridge briefly rebounds over the west for Friday before we are similarly clipped again by a passing storm for Saturday. And again, the ridge briefly rebounds for Sunday for more nice weather.
Meanwhile, another round of incoming Pacific energy approaches the West Coast mid-weekend and the interaction of this energy and the ridge of high pressure is uncertain. Weather forecast models indicate that some energy is likely to penetrate inland and move across the Great Basin early in the next work week, though any storms carried along look to be relatively warm and weak heading into Thanksgiving.
Cold fronts today and Sunday followed by warmer and drier weather
Thursday, November 8, 2018
A couple more cold fronts for this Thursday and Sunday will cross the Steamboat Springs area before significant warming and drying occurs during the upcoming work week.
Behind the first cold front today that is leaving several inches of snow at the Steamboat Ski area, the skies should clear and the sun will reappear for Friday and the first part of Saturday. The lack of clouds tonight and the cold airmass will make for a cold start to Friday morning with temperatures falling below our average low of 20 F. The ever-lowering sun angle will make it difficult for temperatures to recover to our average high of 46 F on Friday.
We’ll see another chilly morning Saturday, but we should be much closer to our average high as a warmer airmass briefly settles over our area, even as high clouds begin to ovespread northern Colorado ahead of the next cold front.
Timed for Veterans Day on Sunday, the cold front will contain some very cold western Canadian air, but limited moisture, so only several inches of snow are expected through the likely raw day.
A ridge of high pressure will build eastward starting early in the work week and is forecast to reside over the Rockies by midweek. Temperatures will be slow to recover on Monday in the cold airmass, but there should be some warming, especially at the higher elevations on Tuesday, and warming at all elevations, along with more sun, by Wednesday.
A cool front that is currently forecast to be quite weak may brush northern Colorado around Thursday, and briefly interrupt the pleasant and seasonable weather that looks to continue into the following weekend. Since the opening of the Steamboat Ski area follows that weekend, I’ll mention, with the usual uncertainty disclaimer, that long-range forecasts indicate another storm may approach the West Coast around the end of the weekend.
Third storm in this cycle on track for later today
Sunday, November 4, 2018
The third and most powerful storm in this cycle that began last Thursday will start moderate to heavy snows over the Steamboat Springs area by this Sunday afternoon. Snow showers will taper off later Monday and linger through Tuesday before a colder and drier airmass moves over our area around midweek and heading into next weekend.
I’d like to mention that my timing in the last forecast discussion was close on the second storm in this series, which started Friday night, but not quite right, as we were short of my forecast (4-8” at mid-mountain and 6-12” up top) by first thing Saturday morning. However, the heavy showers starting Saturday morning behind the front in favorable cool and moist northwest flow brought the storm totals up to 6” at mid-mountain and 11” up top by the afternoon. For those skiers who base their ski day plans on the early morning ski report, take note!
In any event, I expect good things from the storm starting today in continued cool and moist northwest flow, with snows becoming moderate to heavy by sunset and continuing into the overnight hours. The bulk of the expected 6-12” at mid-mountain and 8-16” up top should occur overnight, but showers will continue through Monday as they taper off. Travel over the passes will once again be difficult, and high snowfall rates may make travel difficult at times even at the lower elevations.
Light and intermittent snow showers will persist for Tuesday before a series of fairly dry cold fronts pass through the region, currently timed for Wednesday, Thursday night and Saturday night. It will be cold enough for snow down to the Yampa Valley floor, though the dry nature of the fronts mean we’ll see only brief and likely non-accumulating snow showers as they pass.
Warmer and drier weather is advertised for the beginning of the next work week as the ridge of high pressure off the West Coast moves inland and over the Rockies. But more incoming Pacific energy behind the ridge keeps it moving to the east, with another round of active weather possible behind the exiting ridge.
Three storms lined up for the upcoming week
Thursday, November 1, 2018
After four inches of snow fell at the top of the Steamboat Ski area this Thursday morning (the Powdercam is back!), more snow is on the way as three more storms make their way over the Steamboat Springs area this upcoming week.
Snow showers will linger for today through Friday morning as favorable cool and moist northwest flow persists behind the departing storm last night. There may be a break in the weather Friday afternoon before the first upcoming storm in northwest flow crosses our area starting Friday evening, along with difficult travel conditions at pass level. Snows will start in the evening and be heaviest overnight with windy conditions, before tapering off through the day Saturday and leaving 4-8” at mid-mountain and 6-12” up top.
Another break in the weather is advertised for Saturday night, but will be quickly followed by a stronger and colder storm starting Sunday morning that is again forecast to move over our area in favorable northwest flow. Weather forecast models agree that this will be a longer duration event, with moderate to even heavy snows likely at peak times between noon on Sunday and noon on Monday before they taper off in the afternoon and end in the evening. I would expect an additional 6-12” at mid-mountain and 8-16” at the higher elevations from this second storm, with difficult travel conditions again likely.
Snows should cease from Monday night through most of Tuesday with still-cold temperatures well below our 50 F average. Another approaching storm in still favorable northwest flow will start the snow showers again by later Tuesday before they end later Wednesday as the storm passes through northern Colorado. While there looks to be less moisture associated with this storm as compared to Monday, it is forecast to be colder, so we may see another 3-6” of low-density, light and fluffy snow at mid-mountain by Wednesday afternoon if the storm stays on track.
Weather forecast models agree on an end-of-work-week break in this storm cycle before disagreeing on the southern extent and proximity of another possible storm for northern Colorado around next weekend.
