Denver has recorded more consecutive days of 95°+ temperatures than ever before.
The hot summer of 2012 just keeps piling up the temperature records. On Thursday, July 5 the mercury climbed to 99° at Denver International Airport making it the 14th day in a row that the Mile High City has seen temperature at or above 95°.
The streak easily bests the old record of 12 consecutive 95°+ days set between July 2 and July 13, 1874. Those 14 days also represent the 8th longest streak of 90°+ days since Denver began record keeping in 1872.
Here in Thornton we too have been hot but pretty consistently remained a degree or two cooler than DIA. 13 of our last 14 days saw temperatures of 95° or higher with June 28th being the only exception (92°).
It appears Friday will bring one more day of 90°+ temperatures but the good news is that monsoonal flow is increasing. This will lead to better chances for precipitation today and through the weekend and much cooler temperatures Saturday and Sunday. Get the latest forecast here.
Denver reaches 100° or higher for the 8th time this year, the most 100° or higher days ever recorded in the Mile High City. Click for a larger view. (National Weather Service)
As we discussed earlier in our June weather recap, this summer has thus far been exceedingly warm. Mother Nature seems intent on keeping that going, at least at the outset of July.
At 4:36pm today the temperature at Denver International Airport reached 101°. This breaks the high temperature record for July 2 of 100° last set in 2007.
Most notably however is the fact that this was the 8th time that Denver has met or exceeded the 100° mark. This is the first time since record keeping began in Denver in 1872 that this has happened. See the image to the right for details.
Here in Thornton we were a bit cooler today “only” reaching 98.3° at 2:40pm. This was the 11th straight day of 90° temperatures or above for us.
The heat looks to continue at least until Thursday. After that we are closely watching a change in weather patterns that may not only bring cooler temperatures but also much-needed precipitation.
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Another scorcher in Denver as June 25, 2012 will go into the record books as only the third time the Mile High City registered 105 degrees.
For the fourth day in a row Denver’s temperature broke the 100 degree mark and once again set records in the process. Not only did June 25, 2012 break the record high for the date, it also tied the highest temperature ever recorded in the Mile High City.
Weather record keeping began in Denver in November of 1871. In the nearly 141 years since, only twice has Denver reached 105 degrees – until today.
At 3:34pm the mercury at Denver’s official monitoring station at Denver International Airport reached 105 degrees. This tied the highest temperature ever recorded in the Mile High City which has only been seen twice before. The two previous times were on July 20, 2005 and August 8, 1878.
This of course is a record for June 25 itself as well. The previous record high temperature for June 25 was 100 degrees set in 1991.
The 105 degree reading also is the warmest temperature ever recorded in June. The old record was 104 degrees set on June 26, 1994.
And finally this makes the fourth day in a row that Denver has seen 100+ degree temperatures. Only three other times have that many or more consecutive days recorded readings above the century mark. With forecasts calling for at least one more day of 100+ degree temperatures, the streak may live on.
Thornton sets high temperature marks too
Thornton’s temperatures climbed today as well and broke the 100 degree mark for the third time this month. At 3:53pm ThorntonWeather.com recorded a high of 103° (102.9°). This is the highest temperature recorded by our site since it came online in October 2006.
Denver’s Longest Streaks of 100 Degrees or more
July 4 to July 8, 1989 – Five days (101, 101, 102, 102, 103)
July 19 to July 23, 2005 – Five days (101, 105, 104, 102, 102)
June 29 to July 2, 1990 – Four days (102, 102, 102, 100)
June 22 to June 25, 2012 – Four days – and counting (102, 104, 101, 105)
Denver topped out at 102 degrees on June 24 setting a record for the date.
As officially measured at Denver International Airport, the mercury in Denver today topped out at 102 degrees at 3:35pm. This easily breaks the old record for June 24th of 100 degrees set in 2007.
Here in Thornton we fell just shy of the 100 degree mark today as we topped out at 99.3 degrees at 3:55pm. This follows on 102.2 degrees on Saturday and 100.2 degrees on Friday.
This makes it the third day in a row with Denver seeing 100 degrees or warmer temperatures. Only four other times since recordkeeping began in 1878 have there been three or more 100 degree days in a row in the Mile High City.
Denver has recorded 100 degrees or warmer only 73 times including today. Weather forecasts currently call for 100+ degree temperatures for at least the first part of the week giving a chance that the current streak will continue.
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High temperature records fall once again in Denver
Saturday brought another extraordinarily hot day across northeastern Colorado.
In Denver the mercury climbed to 104° at 4:57pm. This broke the record high temperature for June 23rd of 102° set back in 1954.
This also ties the mark for the warmest temperature ever recorded in Denver during the month of June. The only other time 104° was also recorded was on June 26, 1994.
Here in Thornton we reached 102.2° at 4:09pm. This is the highest temperature recorded by ThorntonWeather.com since we came online in October 2006. Our previous highest temperature was 101.6° on July 17, 2010.
The heat wave continues the record-setting heat we have seen this month in the Mile High City. High temperature records have been set on June 4, June 17, June 18, June 22 and now June 23.
Denver set a high temperature record of 100° on Monday, June 18, 2012.
A record-setting day in the Mile High City. At 2:57pm today the temperature at DIA climbed to 100 degrees thus breaking the record high for the date. The old record was 99 degrees last set in 1990.
Also, the date will go down in history as having had the record high minimum as the mercury dipped to only 69 degrees at 5:38am. That handily beat the previous record of 66 degrees set in 1940.
Here in Thornton we weren’t quite as warm. Our high temperature topped out at 97.5 degrees at 4:23pm. On the other end, our morning low was considerably cooler as we dropped to 60.3 degrees at 6:08am.
The National Weather Service also points out some interesting information about today’s heat:
“Although official records are not recorded for an average daily temperature…a few interesting statistics have been found for today’s excessive warmth. Today’s average daily temperature was a very warm 84.5 degrees. When we look at the average daily temperatures for this date in history…today was by far the warmest for June 18th. The old warmest average daily high temperature for June 18th was 81.5 degrees set back in 1936.”
“The average daily temperature of 84.5 degrees also ties with June 24th, 1954 as the 2nd warmest daily average ever for the month of June in Denver.
“The warmest daily average temperature for the month of June is 85.5 degrees and it occurred on June 27th, 1990.”
Denver set a high temperature record of 98° on Sunday, June 17, 2012.
A record breaking Sunday in Denver as the mercury topped out at 98 degrees at 4:25pm. This breaks the high temperature record for the date of 97 degrees set in 2007.
Here in Thornton we were slightly cooler with the high reaching 97.1 degrees at 3:20pm.
More record-setting heat is forecast for Monday as the mercury is expected to soar to 100 degrees. The record for June 18 is 99 degrees set in 1990 and could very well tumble. Get the latest forecast here: http://www.thorntonweather.com/forecast.php
Denver set a high temperature record of 94° on Tuesday, June 4.
As officially measured at Denver International Airport, the Mile High City hit a high temperature of 94° at 2:25pm. This broke the old record high temperature for the date of 93° set in 2010, 1990 and 1977.
The problem? No other reliable station in the metro area came anywhere near that high of a temperature reading.
For comparison, Rocky Mountain Regional Airport saw 91°, Centennial 88°, Boulder 91°, Denver City Park 90°, Stapleton 90° and here in Thornton we recorded 91°.
The mercury climbed to 88 degrees at 3:03pm today. This sets a new record for the date, breaking the old record of 87 degrees set in 2000. Here in Thornton we matched Denver’s official temperature with 88 degrees as well.
March 2012 goes into the history books as the driest, least snowiest and 2nd warmest March on record in Denver.
The month of March in Denver is typically known for its snow and corresponding chilly temperatures. That however was certainly not the case for March 2012 as the Mile High City saw one of its warmest and driest Marches on record.
From the start of the month to the end, March’s temperatures were well above normal. While we would normally see days with temperatures in the 50s, we instead saw 70s and even a couple of 80+ degree days.
The historical overall average temperature for the month of March is 40.4 degrees (based on 1981 to 2010 normals). March 2012’s average of 49.2 degrees was an astonishing 8.8 degrees above normal.
This sends the month into the record books as the second warmest March ever recorded in Denver. The number one spot is held by March 1910 which saw an average of 50.4 degrees.
Here in Thornton, we were actually slightly warmer than the official Denver measuring station at DIA. Our monthly average temperature came in at 49.6 degrees.
Individually, six days set or tied high temperature records for Denver:
74 degrees on March 13 which tied the old record of 74 set in 2007 and previous years
75 degrees on March 16 which broke the old record of 74 set just one year ago in 2011
76 degrees on March 17 which broke the old record of 75 set in 1974
76 degrees on March 23 which tied the old record of 76 set in 1967
75 degrees on March 25 which tied the old record of 75 set in 1998 and previous years
81 degrees on March 31 which broke the old record of 80 set in 1946
In terms of precipitation, March 2012 will now hold the marks for the driest and least snowiest on record.
The rain bucket at Denver International Airport saw a mere 0.03 inch of liquid precipitation. This was far below the average of 0.92 inch and easily puts March 2012 into the books as the number one driest March on record. The previous record holder was 1908 when 0.11 inch was recorded.
March is historically Denver’s snowiest month averaging 10.7 inches. This year the month only brought a trace of snow on three days. The previous least snowiest March occurred in 1883 when 0.3 inch of the white stuff was recorded.
Just like Denver, Thornton saw an extraordinary lack of snow and precipitation. We as well recorded 0.03 inch of precipitation but we did manage to record 0.40 inch of snow, all on the morning of the 2nd.
CLIMATE REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BOULDER, CO
1026 AM MDT SUN APR 1 2012
...................................
...THE DENVER CO CLIMATE SUMMARY FOR THE MONTH OF MARCH 2012...
CLIMATE NORMAL PERIOD 1981 TO 2010
CLIMATE RECORD PERIOD 1872 TO 2012
WEATHER OBSERVED NORMAL DEPART LAST YEAR`S
VALUE DATE(S) VALUE FROM VALUE DATE(S)
NORMAL
................................................................
TEMPERATURE (F)
RECORD
HIGH 84 03/26/1971
LOW -11 03/28/1886
HIGHEST 81 03/31 84 -3 76 03/21
LOWEST 16 03/02 -11 27 14 03/05
AVG. MAXIMUM 65.5 54.4 11.1 58.7
AVG. MINIMUM 32.9 26.4 6.5 27.8
MEAN 49.2 40.4 8.8 43.3
DAYS MAX >= 90 0 0.0 0.0 0
DAYS MAX <= 32 0 1.9 -1.9 1
DAYS MIN <= 32 14 23.6 -9.6 24
DAYS MIN <= 0 0 0.1 -0.1 0
PRECIPITATION (INCHES)
RECORD
MAXIMUM 4.56 1983
MINIMUM 0.11 1908
TOTALS 0.03R 0.92 -0.89 0.35
DAILY AVG. 0.00 0.03 -0.03 0.01
DAYS >= .01 2 5.9 -3.9 8
DAYS >= .10 0 2.4 -2.4 1
DAYS >= .50 0 0.3 -0.3 0
DAYS >= 1.00 0 0.1 -0.1 0
GREATEST
24 HR. TOTAL 0.03 03/01 TO 03/02 03/28 TO 03/28
03/28 TO 03/28
03/28 TO 03/28
STORM TOTAL MM MM
(MM/DD(HH)) MM 03/28(00) TO 03/28(00)
03/28(00) TO 03/28(00)8
03/28(00) TO 03/28(00)8
SNOWFALL (INCHES)
RECORDS
TOTAL MM 5
TOTALS T 11.7
DEGREE_DAYS
HEATING TOTAL 483 763 -280 666
SINCE 7/1 4863 5202 -339 4817
COOLING TOTAL 0 0 0 0
SINCE 1/1 0 0 0 0
FREEZE DATES
RECORD
EARLIEST 09/08/1962
LATEST 06/08/2007
EARLIEST 10/07
LATEST 05/05
.........................................................
WIND (MPH)
AVERAGE WIND SPEED 11.5
RESULTANT WIND SPEED/DIRECTION 5/203
HIGHEST WIND SPEED/DIRECTION 46/180 DATE 03/18
HIGHEST GUST SPEED/DIRECTION 58/190 DATE 03/18
SKY COVER
POSSIBLE SUNSHINE (PERCENT) MM
AVERAGE SKY COVER 0.50
NUMBER OF DAYS FAIR 9
NUMBER OF DAYS PC 20
NUMBER OF DAYS CLOUDY 2
AVERAGE RH (PERCENT) 34
WEATHER CONDITIONS. NUMBER OF DAYS WITH
THUNDERSTORM 0 MIXED PRECIP 0
HEAVY RAIN 0 RAIN 0
LIGHT RAIN 0 FREEZING RAIN 0
LT FREEZING RAIN 1 HAIL 0
HEAVY SNOW 0 SNOW 0
LIGHT SNOW 2 SLEET 0
FOG 2 FOG W/VIS <= 1/4 MILE 0
HAZE 3
- INDICATES NEGATIVE NUMBERS.
R INDICATES RECORD WAS SET OR TIED.
MM INDICATES DATA IS MISSING.
T INDICATES TRACE AMOUNT.
$$
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