Heavy snow to encompass Denver, but how much will we see in town?

The winter storm I mentioned in my previous post continues to take shape to our west. As I have Tweeted over the last 24 - 48 hours, the once potentially potent storm for Denver now looks far less impressive. That being said, rain and snow showers have already developed over parts of the front range and are expected to become more widespread in coverage and turn to all snow as we move into tomorrow evening. As it stands, I will stick with my previous forecast of 3 - 6 inches of snow for Denver by midday Tuesday, but have seen forecast for as little as 2 - 5 and as much as 4 - 8. No matter how you cut it, it looks like we will not be measuring this storm in feet. Overall looks like a sloppy inch or two tonight, and a few more inches tomorrow night into Tuesday.

This latest storm will definitely remind us all it is still winter in Colorado as temperatures plunge into the 20s (for highs!) on Tuesday. I also want to caution that with still several more forecast runs before the brunt of the storm moves in tomorrow some details may still change. Please be sure to check back, and for all the latest follow me on Twitter: @brendansweather.

Below shows winter storm advisories and warnings surrounding the greater metro area. Denver so far has not been placed under any weather alerts (nws).

Winter Storm Warning Posted

As expected, the National Weather Service upgraded the winter storm watch to a winter storm warning this afternoon. The warning goes into effect tomorrow morning, and expires 6am Friday. With confidence pretty high now that we will see at least some snow, the question now becomes exactly how much. The warning calls for 5 to 10 inches of snow up and down the front range and eastern plains, with locally higher amounts. Some models still bring the low across a little further north leaving Denver in more of the 3 - 6 range. I personally will stick to the lower side for now, and wait to see how things pan out overnight. Maybe things will come together just right and we will be talking 6 - 12 come tomorrow morning.

The Great Wall

System after system continue to pummel the mountains with snow. There seems to be an invisible wall that prohibits any of that moisture from making it just an hour east into Denver. While many mountain locations (especially west facing slopes) are bracing for upwards of SIX FEET snow by Tuesday, Denverites are starting to wonder if we will ever see snow again. Officially we have only seen about 2 inches of snow this season, with many neighborhoods in town not even seeing that much. While we are already flirting with the driest December on record, pretty soon we may very well be talking about the driest winter on record.

It does not look like we will have a white Christmas this year, breaking a streak of four years in a row. There is a slight chance of snow Monday (only 10%), but otherwise this last week before Christmas looks nothing short of uneventful.

Bottom line is there have been plenty of storms pushing onshore this winter but the storm track just isn't favorable for Denver. Often La Nina means not only a milder winter for Denver, but a delayed onset as well. Let's hope for the latter, and as we head into the new year maybe the mountains will share a little of the white stuff with us.

Current weather from the Weather Channel shows an incredible amount of moisture pouring into California, and will feed heavy snows in the Colorado Mountains over the next several days.

Another Storm?

We might have to wait a few more days for Spring as yet another storm is waiting in the wings. With many areas logging a whopping 30 inches of snow in the last week alone, this coming storm may only add to that, and in a big way. At this point Denver is not in the winter storm watch that has been posted for most of eastern Colorado, including Castle Rock and the southern foothills... but this may change if some agreement can be made between the models. With the forecast as is, Denver will likely miss out on the brunt of the storm, but if we can get the winds to shift just a little bit, we could be talking about another 8 - 16 inches as is predicted for most of the watch area. Worth keeping an eye on...

Snowstorm comes to an end...

But not before dropping quite a bit of snow up and down the the front range. After coming in with a roar last night, with snowfall rates in excess of 2 inches an hour, thunder, and wind... the snow continued lightly through the night. This morning there are just a few lingering snow showers, along with sloppy roads and closed schools and businesses. Even with temperatures below freezing, the snow is melting nearly as fast as it fell. By noon most of the streets will likely be completely melted off. Here are a few photos from this latest storm, I have also posted some of the impressive snow totals on the right.

In for a doozy of a storm!

Snow has moved in, and with any luck at all it is here to stay for a few hours. Snowfall forecasts range from 5 to 20 inches depending on who you talk to... it really is just a wait and see. Provided the winds do not shift a little more northerly after midnight, we should be on the upper end of the snowfall forecasts with snow continuing into the day tomorrow. If they do shift, the heavier snow will move into the southern suburbs and Monument hill area - cutting our flow off early.

Already an inch and counting up here... We'll see!