Hot and dry weather continues ahead of some moisture next weekend
Sunday, August 9, 2020
The hot and dry weather continues in Steamboat Springs this week, with sunny skies and a noontime temperature of 80 F observed at the Bob Adams airport this Sunday. Expect mostly sunny skies and occasionally breezy winds from the west and southwest this work week, with high temperatures in the upper eighties and cool overnight lows in the lower forties. There may be a some moisture returning to our area for next weekend, though at this time the amounts appear modest at best.
The biggest weather impact this week in the Steamboat Springs area this week is likely to be smoke from the Pine Gulch fire near Grand Junction, which was almost at 24,000 acres as of last night and was sparked by lightening on July 31. Unfortunately, the primary wind directions from the southwest and west this week looks to transport smoke at times from the fire into our area, which was first noticeable this past Friday afternoon.
Aside from the smoke, a couple of weather systems will travel across the southern Canadian Plains this week, with the first passing north of our area today and tomorrow and the second taking a similar track through next weekend. These storms will not affect our temperatures much, with highs still expected to be in the mid to upper eighties through the week and above our average of 82 F, and lows in the lower forties and even upper thirties for low-lying areas, several degrees below our average of 45 F.
But the storms will create breezy conditions, especially in the afternoons and early evenings, as winds from the west associated with the storms, and southwest between the storms, descend to the surface.
Most of the low pressure area currently off the California Coast discussed in the last weather narrative this past Thursday is now forecast to move westward into the Pacific, so it does not look like we will see any moisture from that system. However, a tropical storm that is forecast to move south of the Baja peninsula late in the work week may inject some moisture into the atmosphere in the generally southwest flow over the Desert Southwest.
Admittedly, weather forecast models are pessimistic for precipitation from this moisture, which would be over our area through the upcoming weekend, but it is likely we would see at least some clouds which would offer some relief from the hot afternoon temperatures. I’ll have a better idea of what next weekend will hold by my next regularly scheduled weather narrative on Thursday afternoon.
