Category Archives: Thornton Weather

Local News, Thornton Weather

Thornton needs snowbusters!

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The City of Thornton is looking for snowbusters to help remove snow for seniors and disabled residents.

Editor’s comment – This is a great way to ‘give back’ to the community and help those who truly need it.  From the City of Thornton:

Winter is coming: Snowbusters needed
Snowbuster volunteers help dig out neighbors in need

THORNTON, CO…Winter is on the way, and while the snow isn’t here yet, Snowbuster volunteers are needed now. Snowbusters is a snow removal program that helps fixed-income seniors and disabled residents who can’t remove snow from their sidewalks. Snowbuster volunteers are paired-up with a neighbor in their area, and when it snows, the Snowbuster goes into action clearing their neighbor’s sidewalk. “These Snowbuster volunteers make a valuable difference in the lives of those in need,” says Thornton Arts and Volunteer Specialist Heather Kailey. “Their work is really appreciated.”

After each storm, Snowbuster volunteers:

  • have 36 hours to shovel their partner’s sidewalks
  • have 48 hours to clear the snow If more than eight inches fall
  • don’t have to worry about driveways, they are not included in this volunteer service

“Snow removal not only provides safe sidewalks for residents, but also for delivery persons and Meals on Wheels staff,” says Kailey. “It’s just a great service for those in need, and it really doesn’t take that much effort from the Snowbuster volunteer.”

Click here for more information.

* ThorntonWeather.com is not endorsed by or an official website of the City of Thornton.

Thornton Weather

Winter Weather Advisory issued for the Front Range

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Current ThorntonWeather.com webcam image.
Current ThorntonWeather.com webcam image.

Due to the deteriorating weather conditions, the National Weather Service has issued a Winter Weather Advisory for snow and blowing snow.  Areas under the advisory include the Denver metro area and areas south to Castle Rock as well as some of the mountain areas (see advisory map below).  The storm seems to be lingering over the Front Range longer than expected but the snowfall is still expected to end quickly late this morning.

URGENT – WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DENVER CO
757 AM MST MON JAN 12 2009

..Winter weather advisory in effect until 11 am MST Tuesday…

The National Weather Service in Denver has issued a Winter Weather Advisory for snow and areas of blowing snow…which is in effect until 11 am MST Tuesday.

Snow…heavy at times…will continue within the greater Denver metro area…the southern Front Range foothills and the palmer divide south of Denver. A band of moderate to heavy snow now over the Denver metro area will continue to move south over the palmer divide south of Denver within the next hour. In addition to snowfall…areas of blowing snow will significantly reduce visibilities at times.

Snowfall is expected to taper off rather quickly later this morning…first over the northern Denver metro area and then eventually over the palmer divide and southern foothills by early this afternoon.

Additional snow accumulations by noon today will range from 1 of 3 inches in Boulder and across the northern Denver suburbs to another 3 to
6 inches in the southern Denver and over the palmer divide.

In addition…north winds of 15 to 25 mph will produce areas of blowing snow and very poor visibilities especially over the higher terrain south and southeast of Denver.

A winter weather advisory means that snow…blowing snow…or freezing drizzle will cause travel difficulties. Be prepared for slippery roads and limited visibilities…and use caution while driving.

A Winter Weather Advisory is in effect for much of the Front Range until 11:00am Monday.
A Winter Weather Advisory is in effect for much of the Front Range until 11:00am Monday.
Thornton Weather

Batten down the hatches – here comes the wind again

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Much of the western and northern Front Range will be under a High Wind Watch starting tonight.
Much of the western and northern Front Range will be under a High Wind Watch starting tonight.

The relative calm of recent days is about to be replaced with high winds not unlike what we saw last week.   Winds will increase tonight and continue through Wednesday east of the Continental Divide.  Areas west of I-25 to the Divide and in the north and central mountain areas will be under a High Wind Watch from late tonight through Wednesday night. 

Much like last week, the usual suspect areas west of I-25 are the places to watch.  Fort Collins, Boulder and the western suburbs of Denver are going to get the worst of the wind.  The Peak to Peak Highway, Highway 287 north of Fort Collins, the Boulder Turnpike west of Broomfield, and Highway 93 between Boulder and Golden are naturally going to be prime targets. 

Wind gusts in excess of 80 mph can be expected in these areas but as we saw last week, other parts of the metro area can receive their fair share of wind as well.  As usual, it is best to put away anything in your yards that could be become a missile and if you are driving in the high wind areas, particular along a north / south route, be prepared for extremely gusty conditions.

Get more local news and weather information on Examiner.com.
This article and many more are posted to the Denver Weather Examiner site.		 Visit Examiner.com for more local Denver news and weather.

The good news is that the downslope winds will also bring warmer temperatures – not that you will want to be outside in the wind.  Wednesday we will be well above normal with temperatures in the mid 50’s and Thursday could reach the low 60’s.  There is a slight chance of snow Friday but that isn’t looking to amount to much.

Thornton Weather

Strong winds hit Thornton and the Front Range

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High winds hit the metro area on Tuesday morning.
High winds hit the metro area on Tuesday morning.

High winds have hit the Front Range with gusts exceeding 80mph in some areas.  These winds are extremely gusty and have the potential to cause damage and can make driving conditions difficult.  

A High Wind Warning remains in effect for much of the Front Range and foothills until 8:00am (see area map below).  While Thornton is not in the warning area, we have received our fair share as ThorntonWeather.com recorded a 51mph gust earlier this morning.  In the near term, west winds of 15 to 30 mph gusting to 45 mph are expected all along the I-25 corridor.  Gusts as high as 75 mph will occur near the base of the foothills and areas in northern Jefferson County, Boulder County and Larimer County in particular will receive the highest winds. 

These winds will cause blowing dust and drivers on north-south roads need to be wary as the cross winds could cause a loss of control.  It would not be surprising to hear of accidents with light weight or high profile vehicles this morning.  Power outages are of course a possibility as well. 

From the National Weather Service, here are some of the recorded gusts across the Front Range:

05:48 AM   12/30/2008    REPORTED BY: ASOS
BROOMFIELD COUNTY, CO   –  2 MILES WEST-NORTHWEST OF BROOMFIELD
NON-T-STORM WIND GUST  MEASURED AT 78.00 MPH   ROCKY MOUNTAIN REGIONAL AIRPORT
 
05:48 AM   12/30/2008    REPORTED BY: TRAINED SPOTTER
LARIMER COUNTY, CO   –   MASONVILLE
NON-T-STORM WIND GUST  MEASURED AT 59.00 MPH    
 
05:15 AM   12/30/2008    REPORTED BY: TRAINED SPOTTER
BOULDER COUNTY, CO   –  1 MILE SOUTHWEST OF ERIE
NON-T-STORM WIND GUST  MEASURED AT 77.00 MPH    
 
04:45 AM   12/30/2008    REPORTED BY: TRAINED SPOTTER
BOULDER COUNTY, CO   –  1 MILE SOUTHWEST OF ERIE
NON-T-STORM WIND GUST  MEASURED AT 66.00 MPH    
 
04:20 AM   12/30/2008    REPORTED BY: MESONET
BOULDER COUNTY, CO   –  2 MILES SOUTHWEST OF BOULDER
NON-T-STORM WIND GUST  MEASURED AT 69.00 MPH   NCAR MESA LAB
 
03:28 AM   12/30/2008    REPORTED BY: TRAINED SPOTTER
WELD COUNTY, CO   –  21 MILE NORTH OF NEW RAYMER
NON-T-STORM WIND GUST  MEASURED AT 76.00 MPH    
 
02:48 AM   12/30/2008    REPORTED BY: TRAINED SPOTTER
JEFFERSON COUNTY, CO   –   LAKEWOOD
NON-T-STORM WIND GUST  MEASURED AT 66.00 MPH    
 
02:10 AM   12/30/2008    REPORTED BY: MESONET
BOULDER COUNTY, CO   –  1 MILE WEST OF ELDORADO SPRINGS
NON-T-STORM WIND GUST  MEASURED AT 66.00 MPH    
 
12:30 AM   12/30/2008    REPORTED BY: MESONET
BOULDER COUNTY, CO   –  2 MILES NORTH-NORTHEAST OF BOULDER
NON-T-STORM WIND GUST  MEASURED AT 67.00 MPH    
 
12:30 AM   12/30/2008    REPORTED BY: MESONET
JEFFERSON COUNTY, CO   –  9 MILES WEST-SOUTHWEST OF BOULDER
NON-T-STORM WIND GUST  MEASURED AT 82.00 MPH   ROCKY FLATS – NATIONAL WIND TECHNOLOGY CENTER
 
11:15 PM   12/29/2008    REPORTED BY: TRAINED SPOTTER
BOULDER COUNTY, CO   –  2 MILES NORTH OF LONGMONT
NON-T-STORM WIND GUST  MEASURED AT 84.00 MPH    
 
10:39 PM   12/29/2008    REPORTED BY: TRAINED SPOTTER
LARIMER COUNTY, CO   –  BERTHOUD
NON-T-STORM WIND GUST  MEASURED AT 91.00 MPH   CARTER LAKE
 
09:36 PM   12/29/2008    REPORTED BY: TRAINED SPOTTER
BOULDER COUNTY, CO   –  2 MILES NORTH OF LONGMONT
NON-T-STORM WIND GUST  MEASURED AT 71.00 MPH    
 
09:14 PM   12/29/2008    REPORTED BY: MESONET
JEFFERSON COUNTY, CO   –   ROCKY FLATS
NON-T-STORM WIND GUST  MEASURED AT 78.00 MPH    
 
09:06 PM   12/29/2008    REPORTED BY: TRAINED SPOTTER
LARIMER COUNTY, CO   –  BERTHOUD
NON-T-STORM WIND GUST  MEASURED AT 88.00 MPH   AT CARTER LAKE
 
07:35 PM   12/29/2008    REPORTED BY: MESONET
BOULDER COUNTY, CO   –  2 MILES SOUTH OF BOULDER
NON-T-STORM WIND GUST  MEASURED AT 65.00 MPH   NCAR MESA LABS
 
07:21 PM   12/29/2008    REPORTED BY: MESONET
BOULDER COUNTY, CO   –  3 MILES EAST OF GOLD HILL
NON-T-STORM WIND GUST  MEASURED AT 81.00 MPH    

 

A High Wind Warning is in effect for much of the western part of the Front Range through 8:00am Tuesday.
A High Wind Warning is in effect for much of the western part of the Front Range through 8:00am Tuesday.
Thornton Weather

Weather Geek Stuff shown on the Weather Channel

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Weather Geek Stuff is a new site with a wide array of weather related clothing and novelties. The site was recently shown on The Weather Channel.
Weather Geek Stuff is a new site with a wide array of weather related clothing and novelties. The site was recently shown on The Weather Channel.

You have read about Weather Geek Stuff (www.weathergeekstuff.com) in our news pages before.  It is a great site to buy clothing, novelties and much more for yourself or the weather geek in your life. 

Yesterday, Weather Geek Stuff was proudly plugged on The Weather Channel during one of their segments talking about gifts for weather enthusiasts.  It was of course pretty exciting to see.  You can watch the video below.

Powered by Café Press, we have created a bunch of “Weather Geek” logo merchandise for sale on WeatherGeekStuff.com.  There is even “Weather Diva” logo merchandise stuff for ladies and kids can get stuff in their size as well.  We have also created some ‘warning sign’ logos that are pretty amusing that can be put on all sorts of different items.  If you are a huge fan of ThorntonWeather.com, you can get merchandise with our logo too. Everything from t-shirts to polo shirts and from coffee mugs to clocks are available, all with a cool logos and graphics.

Climatology, Thornton Weather

Dreaming of a white Christmas? The chances are slim

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What are the odds of a white Denver Christmas? Not very good.
What are the odds of a white Denver Christmas? Not very good.

As Christmas gets closer everyone always wonders if we are going to get the proverbial white Christmas. Unfortunately, if you look at Denver and Thornton weather history, the chances arent all that good but it also depends on what you define as a white Christmas. December just isnt that snowy of a month, ranking as only the fourth snowiest (behind March, November and April) so historically we have a bit of a disadvantage.

For a complete look at Denver’s Christmas weather statistics, click here.

Thornton Weather

What are the chances the weather will kill you?

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What are the odds that a weather event will be your undoing? Image courtesy WeatherGeekStuff.com.
What are the odds that a weather event will be your undoing? Image courtesy WeatherGeekStuff.com.

In an interesting piece from the National Safety Council, they outline many of the unnatural ways you could die and what the chances are that they would actually happen. The good news is that weather most likely won’t kill you. The bad news is there are lots of other ways that you have a better chance of dying from. 

Over your lifetime, the NSC calculates you have a 1 in 22 chance (YIKES!) that you will die from something other than natural causes. Motor vehicle accidents are probably the most common way with a 1 in 84 chance you will die in a crash. Hmmm. I think I will walk home – at least then my chances jump to 1 in 267! 

As for the weather and other disasters…
  • Your chances of being struck by lightning and dying? 1 in 81,949. Pretty slim odds there. You are more likely to drown in your own bath tub (1 in 11,079). 
  • What about earthquakes, the one natural disaster that scares me more than any? 1 in 103,004 chance you will die in a temblor. That’s about the same as dying from overexertion (1 in 119,098). I guess maybe I am relatively safe from those after all, especially since I don’t live in California anymore!
  • What about the chances of dying in a major storm? Not looking too good there – a 1 in 4,361 chance you will die that way. Talk about Mother Nature’s wrath!  That’s about the same chance as you dying from choking on your dinner (1 in 4,411). 
  • Flooding can be a concern in some areas of the nation. You have a 1 in 317,595 chance of dying that way. You have a better chance of dying from electrocution from a live power source than that (1 in 36,297). 
  • All in all, the statistics say that you have a 1 in 1,749 chance of dying from some force of nature, about the same odds of dying from assault with a sharp weapon (1 in 1,817). 
I suppose those aren’t too bad of odds, especially when contrasted with every day dangers such as driving a car like we mentioned above. Other every day dangers that give you a good chance of taking a dirt nap? You have a 1 in 1,456 chance of dying in an uncontrolled building fire. Heading to the hospital? You have a 1 in 1,437 chance of dying from medical / surgical complications. That mean, neighbor dog? You have a 1 in 115,489 chance that it or another dog will kill you. 
 
In the end, weather probably shouldn’t worry you too much.  Do you have a weather or natural disaster fear?  Let us know!  Leave a comment below!
This article was also posted to the Denver Weather Examiner site. Get more local news and information on Examiner.com.  Denver Weather Examiner
Thornton Weather

Record setting cold continues for Thornton and Denver

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Erin Mooty tries to stay warm as she waits for a bus Monday. Image courtesy Darin McGregor, The Rocky.
Erin Mooty tries to stay warm as she waits for a bus Monday. Image courtesy Darin McGregor, The Rocky.

The cold continues to hang on and in the process Denver managed to set one record and tie another in the last 24 hours.  This is of course on top of the two records set before that.

Yesterday the mercury at Denver International Airport only climbed to 2 degrees.  This smashes the old record low maximum temperature for the date of 19 degrees set way back in 1914.  Following up on that, this morning DIA fell to an official low of 8 degrees below zero.  This ties the record low temperature for December 16th last set in 1897. 

Today we have good news and bad news.  The good news is that the snow we were expecting didn’t materialize on the Front Range thanks to downslope winds.  That at least saves adding to the misery of the cold.  The bad news though is that this cold is far from over.
 
Tuesday we will remain quite cold and only reach 18 degrees here in Denver.  The mountains will continue to get pounded by snow, particularly the southwestern areas where two to three feet could fall.  A number of advisories have been posted for the southwestern and central mountains so if you are heading to the hills, you may want check the conditions before you go. 

Wednesday, Thursday and Friday there is a chance we could see temperatures above freezing but it won’t be by much – maybe 33 or 34 degrees.  A chance of snow will remain in the forecast for the foreseeable future as well although there won’t be much if it does snow. 

Come the weekend though, the “heat wave” looks to come to an end as an upper level trough that is sitting over the Pacific coast right now moves into the area.  With it our chances of snow increase and the temperatures could drop to the low 20’s Saturday, Sunday and Monday. 

The best piece of advice?  Bundle up and stay inside if you can!  

Where’s this weather coming from?  The jet stream is currently pulling in moist air from the Pacific and sending it right over Colorado.  This in turn is pulling down cold air from the north.  The image below helps you see what is going on.

The jet stream is currently speeding over southern Colorado.

Thornton Weather

ThorntonWeather.com is awarded WXForum.net featured website award

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ThorntonWeather.com is WXForum.net's Featured Weather Web Site.We are pleased to announce that ThorntonWeather.com has been chosen as WXForum.net’s Featured Weather Web Site for Summer 2008.  WXForum.net is an online community of weather enthusiasts with over 1,100 members.  Members discuss everything from weather conditions to forecasting to personal weather stations and more. 

ThorntonWeather.com is glad to be recognized by its peers for its website.  You can read more about the award and our weather station on the forum.  Click here to read it.

Thornton Weather

Dangerously cold temperatures set records in Denver

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Dangerously cold temperatures and wind chills have invaded the Front Range.
Dangerously cold temperatures and wind chills have invaded the Front Range.

If you love the cold you must be in heaven this morning.  We are awakening to sub-zero temperatures that have now set records for two days in a row. 

Last night at 6:35pm the temperature at Denver International Airport reached a frigid -18 degrees.  This breaks the 107 year old record of -14 degrees for December 14th set way back in 1901. 

This morning the mercury dropped a bit further to -19 degrees at 2:31am.  That absolutely smashed the previous record low temperature for December 15th of -6 set in 1951.

Here in Thornton, ThorntonWeather.com also set records for low temperatures since we first went online in October 2006.  At 6:06am this morning the mercury was at a mere -14 degrees thus breaking our previous all-time cold temperature record of -13.3 degrees set on February 2, 2007.  At 4:08am we recorded a wind chill of -25.3, an all time record for us as well.  Certainly our record keeping hasn’t been going on as long as the official Denver ones but it is still pretty neat to see. 

At 7:00am, stations on the Rocky Mountain Weather Network were recording temperatures well into the negative teens.
At 7:00am, stations on the Rocky Mountain Weather Network were recording temperatures well into the negative teens.

As dawn approached, our temperature map from the Rocky Mountain Weather Network showed many stations across the Front Range reporting temps in the negative teens.  With daybreak, we won’t see much of a warm up either  as we will only reach a high of 16 degrees today.   Denver’s official record low maximum for this date set back in 1914 is 19 degrees so there is a pretty good chance that will be a third record set.  Tonight we are expecting a touch of snow, maybe an inch is about it.

When will the cold end?  Not for the foreseeable future unfortunately.  Long range forecasts going out to next Sunday do not show even one day with temperatures above freezing and there is a slight chance of snow almost every day.

This severe cold almost assures rough travel conditions as the sun isn’t helping to melt the lingering snow.  Please be safe out there and allow plenty of time to arrive at your destination.