The month of December brings with it the official start of winter and oftentimes, colder and snowier weather conditions. It however can also offer unseasonably warm temperatures and bone dry conditions. Given our recent mild and dry weather, we are certainly hoping for a change in the coming month.
Overall December’s monthly mean temperature of 30.0 degrees (1981 – 2010 averages) makes it our coldest month. Snow is always on everyone’s mind this time of year but December is only our 3rd snowiest month behind March and November with an average of 8.5 inches of the white stuff.
We closed out November quite wet and chilly and that is expected to continue into the first part of December. Long term models then point to a continuation of above normal precipitation but near normal temperatures.
An aerial view of sunset in Thornton on November 14, 2016. (Shannon Dizmang)
Typically November is a quiet weather month with plenty of nice, fall days but it can also turn wet with healthy doses of snow and moisture. The wide variety of conditions can create picturesque scenes ranging from blue skies and snow-capped mountains to a wintry wonderland in the metro area.
November is the second snowiest month of the year so winter conditions are not unusual. Typically though, these bouts of cold are short-lived and normal daytime conditions are pleasant.
Outdoor activities continue to be quite popular during the month. The cooling temperatures do oftentimes lead to an increase in wildlife activity.
All of the above help lead to a month in which a wide variety of scenes, flora and fauna can be captured.
Slideshow updated November 28, 2016
To learn more about how to send your photo to us for inclusion in the slideshow, see below the slideshow.
Showcasing images captured by ThorntonWeather.com readers as well as some of our own, our monthly slideshow covers the entire gamut of weather-related imagery.
Sunsets, sunrises, wildlife and of course every type of weather condition are vividly depicted in images captured from yours and our cameras.
[flickr_set id=”72157676627507985″]
What is missing in the slideshow above? Your photo!
Our monthly photo slideshow is going to feature images that we have taken but more importantly images that you have captured. The photos can be of anything even remotely weather-related.
Landscapes, current conditions, wildlife, pets, kids. Whimsical, newsy, artsy. Taken at the zoo, some other area attraction, a local park, a national park or your backyard. You name it, we want to see and share it!
Images can be taken in Thornton, Denver or anywhere across the extraordinary Centennial State. We’ll even take some from out of state if we can tie it to Colorado somehow.
We’ll keep the criteria very open to interpretation with just about any image eligible to be shown in our slideshows.
What do you win for having your image in our slideshow? We are just a ‘mom and pop’ outfit and make no money from our site so we really don’t have the means to provide prizes. However you will have our undying gratitude and the satisfaction that your images are shared on the most popular website in Thornton.
To share you images with us and get them included in the slideshow just email them to us or share them with ThorntonWeather.com on any of the various social media outlets. Links are provided below.
We thought the daily high temperature record for November 16 would fall today and indeed it did. However the Mile High City also managed to tie the record for the warmest temperature ever recorded during the month of November.
At 1:24pm the station at Denver International Airport reported a mercury reading of 80 degrees.
This easily bested the previous record high temperature for November 16 of 77 degrees set in 1941.
Perhaps more notably, the reading also ties the all-time record high temperature for the month of November. The old mark was 80 degrees set on November 8, 2006. This is in turn the latest in the year an 80 degree reading has been tallied.
Here in Thornton, we were a bit warmer than DIA. Our temperature topped out at 81.5 degrees at 1:02pm.
Showcasing the wide swings of weather we experience here in Colorado is the fact that after these records today, high temperatures tomorrow won’t go very far into the 40s. Check out forecast for the latest.
Stay up to date with Thornton’s weather: ‘Like’ us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter and add us to your Google+ circles
Weather – The true determining factor of who will be president?
We oftentimes hear about how weather can affect voter turnout but is there truly a link? If there is, who does it benefit – Republicans or Democrats? Studies seem to indicate that what might be thought of as an urban myth is indeed true and could in fact play a role in 2016.
In 2005, political science researchers Brad Gomez, Thomas Hansford and George Krause completed the first comprehensive study on the correlation between weather and voter turnout. Their paper, “The Republicans Should Pray for Rain: Weather, Turnout, and Voting in U.S. Presidential Elections” confirmed the conventional wisdom that weather does affect voter turnout, bad weather benefits Republicans and most interestingly, two presidential elections in the last 60 years may have had different results had the weather been different.
Looking back at presidential elections from 1948 to 2008, the study takes into account the weather in 3,000 U.S. counties. They in turn looked at key areas of the nation and how weather, good and bad, affected voter turnout. In the end, the study determined that precipitation is the key weather condition to affect voter turnout.
The weather during the month of November in Denver metro area can offer just about anything. While it is normally a quiet month, it can be prone to extremes.
November is Denver’s second snowiest month and major snowstorms are not entirely uncommon. However conditions can also be quite dry.
Temperatures during the month continue to cool as we get closer to winter and by the end of the month the low temperatures routinely dip to 20 degrees or below. At times it can in fact bring conditions more like what we see in January.
Certainly given how warm and dry we were in October, we could use some relief. Will that happen?
High pressure was the dominant weather feature for the month of October and that led to a pattern that blocked off moisture and kept temperatures well above normal. Record-setting highs were made while precipitation was a rare event.
The historical average monthly temperature for the month of October in Denver is 50.9 degrees. That number was easily eclipsed. Here in Thornton we saw an average temperature of 55.8 degrees. Out at DIA where Denver’s official numbers are kept, it was much warmer with an average of 57.8 degrees.
Both averages for October 2016 were far above normal. Officially the month was so warm it became the fourth warmest October on record in Denver. The number one spot was quite secure though with an average of 59.9 degrees back in 1950.
Temperatures in Thornton ranged from a high of 84.8 degrees on the 16th down to a low of 27.1 degrees on the morning of the 20th. Out at the airport, the warmest reading was 86 degrees and the lowest 25 degrees, both on the same days that Thornton saw its warmest and coldest readings.
Denver recorded four record daily high temperatures during the month. The first record high came on the 15th of the month to be followed by records on the 27th and 28th then a tie for the record high on the 31st.
In terms of precipitation, the same high pressure that kept things warm, kept things dry as well. Thornton recorded a mere 0.43 inches in its rain bucket, all during the first half of the month. The airport was a bit drier with 0.26 inches recorded.
On average Denver receives 1.02 inches of precipitation in October so both locations were far below normal. While it was certainly dry, it was not so much so that it was a record-setter as the month failed to make it into the top 20 driest Octobers.
No snow was recorded during the month so we are still awaiting that first event of the season. This however is not entirely unusual as historically, 27% of Denver’s October fail to see any of the white stuff.
Thornton, Colorado’s October 2016 temperature summary. (ThorntonWeather.com)Thornton, Colorado’s October 2016 precipitation summary. (ThorntonWeather.com)
From the National Weather Service:
CLIMATE REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DENVER/BOULDER CO
244 AM MDT TUE NOV 1 2016
...................................
...THE DENVER CO CLIMATE SUMMARY FOR THE MONTH OF OCTOBER 2016...
CLIMATE NORMAL PERIOD 1981 TO 2010
CLIMATE RECORD PERIOD 1872 TO 2016
WEATHER OBSERVED NORMAL DEPART LAST YEAR`S
VALUE DATE(S) VALUE FROM VALUE DATE(S)
NORMAL
................................................................
TEMPERATURE (F)
RECORD
HIGH 89 10/16/1991
10/10/1910
LOW -2 10/29/1917
HIGHEST 86 10/16 83 3 87 10/11
LOWEST 25 10/20 22 3 28 10/28
AVG. MAXIMUM 74.5 65.3 9.2 70.1
AVG. MINIMUM 41.2 36.6 4.6 42.8
MEAN 57.8 50.9 6.9 56.5
DAYS MAX >= 90 0 0.0 0.0 0
DAYS MAX <= 32 0 0.4 -0.4 0
DAYS MIN <= 32 3 8.5 -5.5 1
DAYS MIN <= 0 0 0.0 0.0 0
PRECIPITATION (INCHES)
RECORD
MAXIMUM 4.17 1969
MINIMUM T 1934
TOTALS 0.26 1.02 -0.76 1.76
DAILY AVG. 0.01 0.03 -0.02 0.06
DAYS >= .01 3 5.3 -2.3 6
DAYS >= .10 1 2.4 -1.4 3
DAYS >= .50 0 0.5 -0.5 2
DAYS >= 1.00 0 0.1 -0.1 0
GREATEST
24 HR. TOTAL 0.22 10/05 TO 10/06 10/20 TO 10/21
SNOWFALL (INCHES)
RECORDS
TOTAL MM MM
TOTALS 0.0 4.0
DEGREE_DAYS
HEATING TOTAL 231 440 -209 274
SINCE 7/1 310 581 -271 301
COOLING TOTAL 17 5 12 16
SINCE 1/1 878 769 109 877
FREEZE DATES
RECORD
EARLIEST 09/08/1962
LATEST 06/08/2007
EARLIEST 10/07
LATEST 05/05
..................................................
WIND (MPH)
AVERAGE WIND SPEED 10.0
RESULTANT WIND SPEED/DIRECTION 4/197
HIGHEST WIND SPEED/DIRECTION 33/260 DATE 10/04
HIGHEST GUST SPEED/DIRECTION 42/270 DATE 10/03
SKY COVER
POSSIBLE SUNSHINE (PERCENT) MM
AVERAGE SKY COVER 0.50
NUMBER OF DAYS FAIR 10
NUMBER OF DAYS PC 17
NUMBER OF DAYS CLOUDY 4
AVERAGE RH (PERCENT) 40
WEATHER CONDITIONS. NUMBER OF DAYS WITH
THUNDERSTORM 0 MIXED PRECIP 0
HEAVY RAIN 0 RAIN 1
LIGHT RAIN 3 FREEZING RAIN 0
LT FREEZING RAIN 0 HAIL 0
HEAVY SNOW 0 SNOW 0
LIGHT SNOW 0 SLEET 0
FOG 4 FOG W/VIS <= 1/4 MILE 3
HAZE 0
- INDICATES NEGATIVE NUMBERS.
R INDICATES RECORD WAS SET OR TIED.
MM INDICATES DATA IS MISSING.
T INDICATES TRACE AMOUNT.
The United States returns to Standard Time at 2:00am Sunday as Daylight Saving Time comes to an end.
The biannual ritual of changing our clocks to adjust for Daylight Saving Time occurs tonight providing yet another signal of the changing of seasons. The United States will ‘fall back’ one hour at 2:00am Sunday morning as we return to Standard Time.
The ritual of changing our clocks twice a year can be met with some resistance as some people struggle to adjust their body’s internal clock. Others actually like the return to standard time as they get to enjoy an extra hour of sleep.
The time change definitely has big effects on the dawning of daylight and how early it gets dark in the evening.
Sunrise on Saturday occurs at 7:34am but on Sunday it will be at 6:35am. Similarly, sunset will occur at 5:53pm on Saturday but on Sunday the sun will disappear over the horizon at 4:52pm.
For many this means that when they get home from work it will now be dark and outdoor activities will be significantly curtailed as a result.
Arizona and Hawaii are the only states that do not observe Daylight Saving Time and remain on Standard Time year round. The U.S. territories of Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, and the United States Virgin Islands also do not observe the event.
It won’t be all that long though before Daylight Saving Time returns. On March 12, 2017 we will ‘spring forward.’
Daylight Saving Time Schedule
The mandated beginning and end of Daylight Saving Time has changed in the United States over the years.
The most recent schedule was set by the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and took effect in 2007. We now ‘spring forward’ to begin Daylight Saving Time on the second Sunday in March and ‘fall back’ with the return to Standard Time on the first Sunday in November.
A stunning sunset starts off October 2016 in fine form. (Mary Lindow)
October in Thornton can bring a wide variety of weather conditions, perfect for the photographer in all of us.
The month brings the changing of the colors at Colorado’s lower elevations and it is also is typically when we see our first freeze and first snow.
Couple those facts with our usual widely varying landscapes and wildlife and we have a month that is sure to bring in plenty of photo opportunities.
Slideshow updated October 31, 2016
To learn more about how to send your photo to us for inclusion in the slideshow, see below the slideshow.
Showcasing images captured by ThorntonWeather.com readers as well as some of our own, our monthly slideshow covers the entire gamut of weather-related imagery.
Sunsets, sunrises, wildlife and of course every type of weather condition are vividly depicted in images captured from yours and our cameras.
[flickr_set id=”72157674923421206″]
What is missing in the slideshow above? Your photo!
Our monthly photo slideshow is going to feature images that we have taken but more importantly images that you have captured. The photos can be of anything even remotely weather-related.
Landscapes, current conditions, wildlife, pets, kids. Whimsical, newsy, artsy. Taken at the zoo, some other area attraction, a local park, a national park or your backyard. You name it, we want to see and share it!
Images can be taken in Thornton, Denver or anywhere across the extraordinary Centennial State. We’ll even take some from out of state if we can tie it to Colorado somehow.
We’ll keep the criteria very open to interpretation with just about any image eligible to be shown in our slideshows.
What do you win for having your image in our slideshow? We are just a ‘mom and pop’ outfit and make no money from our site so we really don’t have the means to provide prizes. However you will have our undying gratitude and the satisfaction that your images are shared on the most popular website in Thornton.
To share you images with us and get them included in the slideshow just email them to us or share them with ThorntonWeather.com on any of the various social media outlets. Links are provided below.
The month of October is ending the same way it has been the majority of the month with above normal temperature readings. Denver has in fact tied the record high temperature for Halloween making it the fourth record high temperature set this month.
At 12:24pm the National Weather Service reported 79 degrees at Denver International Airport. This typed the record high for October 31 last set in 1950.
Here in Thornton we were just a couple degrees warmer with a high of 81 degrees at 3:12pm.
Today’s record-tying reading follows three record high temperatures set earlier this month on October 15th, the 27th and the 28th.
Stay up to date with Thornton’s weather: ‘Like’ us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter and add us to your Google+ circles
The lack of measurable snow this October is not all that unusual. Click for larger view.
October will end with Denver not having seen any snow accumulation at all during the month. While that, coupled with the overall lack of precipitation is concerning, not having snow is not at all unusual.
On average, the Mile High City receives 4.2 inches during October.
However, since record-keeping began in 1882, the month failed to yield any snow at all in 19 years since. Further, in another 17 of those years we only received a trace.
This means that in 27% of the past 134 years, we saw essentially no accumulating snow in October. So, the fact we won’t have received any this month is not uncommon.
The average date for our first snowfall is October 18th so we aren’t running all that far behind. The earliest seasonal snowfall came on September 3, 1961 and the latest on November 21, 1934.
We have been exceedingly dry, really since the first part of June.
In October, Denver has recorded a mere 0.26 inches of precipitation while here in Thornton we have fared better with 0.43 inches. On average we expect to see 0.97 inches so both locations are well below normal.
Perhaps more notable than the lack of moisture is the temperatures which have been unseasonably warm.
As of right now, the average temperature for the month is at 57.2 degrees in Denver, 55.1 degrees in Thornton. This is running far above the historical October average temperature of 50.9 degrees.
Depending on temperatures between now and the end of the month, it is looking likely that October 2016 will finish somewhere in the top five or six warmest Octobers on record.
Weather, natural disasters & climate news and information.
The month of December brings with it the official start of winter and oftentimes, colder and snowier weather conditions. It however can also offer unseasonably warm temperatures and bone dry conditions. Given our recent mild and dry weather, we are certainly hoping for a change in the coming month.
The weather during the month of November in Denver metro area can offer just about anything. While it is normally a quiet month, it can be prone to extremes.
