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The Front Range Forecast: A Spring Snow is on the way

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Figure 5: the 10:1 snowfall forecast for the next 3 days from the GFS and tropicaltidbits.com

In Brief:

A warm weekend becomes rain, thunderstorms and some snow at lower elevations.

The Forecast Discussion:

A more Spring-like storm is on its way for Sunday afternoon and evening (Figure 1). This storm will create a more prolonged impact in the mountains (Sun AM to Mon AM, then again Tuesday and Wednesday mid-days). At lower elevations, precipitation will mainly fall between 1pm Sunday and 11pm Sunday (Figure 2 and Figure 3).

The cold front should sweep past Longmont around 2pm. Precipitation will start as rain and thunderstorms with windy conditions and dropping temperatures. Liquid water totals seem to add up to 0.25 to 0.75 inch with locally 1 inch in lucky neighborhoods (Figure 6). Temperatures will be in the 50's Sunday, so we won't see lower elevations switch to snow until evening (the low will be around 20F). The Monday morning commute could be slushy with ice on bridges. Drive carefully//slow down!

Mini-snowfall roundup:

Weather5280.com  1-4" (Figure 4)
The GFS    2-4"  (Figure 5)
Channel 9    1-3"
Channel 7  2-3"
I'm calling for 0.5-3" in Longmont.

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Figure 1: the 10 day graphical forecast for Longmont from weatherunderground.com
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Figure 2: the surface forecast map and precipitation for Sunday PM from the GFS and tropicaltidbits.com
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Figure 3: the surface forecast map and precipitation for Sunday midnight from the GFS and tropicaltidbits.com
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Figure 4: the snowfall forecast from Matt Makens and weather5280.com
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Figure 5: the 10:1 snowfall forecast for the next 3 days from the GFS and tropicaltidbits.com
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Figure 6: the precipitation forecast for the next 3 days from the GFS and tropicaltidbits.com

The Longer Range Forecast:

Things remain cool at the start of the week (Figure 1) with a return of a few rain/snow showers Tuesday PM. We warm up nicely by the end of the week with indications of a more stormy weekend.

 


About the Author: John Ensworth

John Ensworth used to work from Longmont as the PI for the NASA through the IGES (The Institute for Global Environmental Strategies). He now teaches technology, algebra, astronomy, meteorology, film school, and Lego robotics to middle/high school.
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Current Weather

Cloudy

Cloudy

44°F

UV Index
0 Low
Pressure
29.76 Falling
Visibility
8 miles
Dewpoint
41 °F
Humidity
90%
Wind
NNW 2.7 mph
Gust
5 mph
Wind Chill
43 °F

Hourly Forecast

Today
4 AM
44°F
Cloudy
Today
5 AM
44°F
Rain
Today
6 AM
44°F
Rain
Today
7 AM
44°F
Rain
Today
8 AM
42°F
Cloudy
Today
9 AM
42°F
Rain
Today
10 AM
41°F
Rain
Today
11 AM
41°F
Cloudy
Today
12 PM
40°F
Rain
Today
1 PM
41°F
Rain
Today
2 PM
41°F
Cloudy
Today
3 PM
41°F
Rain

7 Day Forecast

Mostly cloudy w/ t-storms

Friday

69 °F

Variable cloudiness with a couple of thundershowers in the afternoon; gusty winds and small hail can accompany any downpour


Thunderstorms

Friday Night

41 °F

Cloudy; showers and thunderstorms in the evening, then late-night rain; gusty winds and small hail can accompany any downpour


Rain

Saturday

42 °F

Chilly with periods of rain and a thunderstorm; travel in the foothills and mountains will be slippery due to snow


Rain and snow

Saturday Night

37 °F

Cloudy with rain, mixed with a little snow late; travel in the foothills and mountains will be slippery due to snow


Mostly cloudy

Sunday

61 °F

Mostly cloudy and warmer


Partly cloudy w/ t-storms

Sunday Night

36 °F

A thunderstorm in spots in the evening; otherwise, partly cloudy


Partly sunny

Monday

71 °F

Partly sunny, pleasant and warmer


Partly cloudy

Monday Night

42 °F

Partly cloudy


Mostly sunny

Tuesday

73 °F

Mostly sunny and windy; pleasant in the afternoon


Mostly cloudy

Tuesday Night

40 °F

Mostly cloudy


Sunrise and Sunset

Sunrise
6:06 AM
Sunset
7:51 PM

Based on AccuWeather data