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Sunday Update: The Front Range Forecast: Winds drop and an eclipse

In Brief:

Winds drop, temperatures rise and clear skies for the eclipse.

Sunday update.

Strong winds and high fire danger continues for a few more hours. We take a few days to return to the 70's (Figure 1 update) while rain chances remain very low.

For the eclipse, the sun will be blocked to about 70% at 12:41pm.  The first moment of partial eclipse will arrive at 11:24am and the partial eclipse will end at 1:54pm.  At NO time will this eclipse be safe to view with the naked eye from Colorado. Skies will be mostly clear at the time of the eclipse (red line in Figure 1 update).

  You must have approved sun viewing glasses to view this directly (there are still some that will arrive over night and same day from Amazon (not a sponsor).  You can also view it by putting a small hole in an index card and projecting the image on another card below, or on a table surface (for example).  Be safe and enjoy!

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Caption

End Sunday update.

The Forecast Discussion:

Friday showers move off to the east as a warm weekend sets up (Figure 1).  Another somewhat-cut-off low drifts by Sunday PM and Monday giving us a possible quarter inch of rain.  Nighttime snow showers are possible, but I-25 cities may only see snow in the air or a coating on the ground overnight.

The Sunday/Monday showers come in with a low pressure system and cool front (Figure 2). There will also be a chance of thunder with this system, but nothing severe (Figure 3).

Easter Sunrise Forecast:

Sunrise will be at 6:34am with temperatures around 36F, 20% cloud cover, and winds from the easte around 4mph.  It should be a pretty good sunrise service wherever you go along I-25.

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Figure 1: the 10 day graphical forecast for Longmont from weatherunderground.com
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Figure 2: the Sunday surface forecast map from the NWS.
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Figure 3: the SPC thunderstorm/severe weather forecast for Sunday.

The Long Range Forecast:

A warm-up kicks in Tuesday with possible 70's later in the week (Figure 1).  For Longmont, the next 5 days may see up to a quarter inch of water fall (Figure 4), but snowfall should remain in the Foothills and nearby mountains (Figure 5). 

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Figure 4: the 5 day precipitation forecast from the GFS and weather5280.com
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Figure 5: the 5 day 10:1 ratio snowfall forecast from the GFS and weather5280.com

 


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

Mostly sunny

Mostly sunny

69°F

UV Index
9 Very High
Pressure
30 Falling
Visibility
6 miles
Dewpoint
46 °F
Humidity
43%
Wind
SSE 2.2 mph
Gust
5.5 mph
Wind Chill
69 °F

Hourly Forecast

Today
12 PM
69°F
Partly sunny
Today
1 PM
72°F
Partly sunny
Today
2 PM
74°F
Partly sunny
Today
3 PM
73°F
Partly sunny
Today
4 PM
71°F
Partly sunny
Today
5 PM
70°F
Partly sunny w/ t-storms
Today
6 PM
68°F
Partly sunny
Today
7 PM
65°F
Partly sunny
Today
8 PM
63°F
Partly sunny
Today
9 PM
60°F
Partly cloudy
Today
10 PM
57°F
Partly cloudy
Today
11 PM
54°F
Partly cloudy

7 Day Forecast

Partly sunny w/ t-storms

Monday

74 °F

Some sun with a thundershower in spots this afternoon


Partly cloudy

Monday Night

46 °F

Partly cloudy


Thunderstorms

Tuesday

78 °F

Considerable cloudiness with a thunderstorm in the afternoon; gusty winds and small hail can accompany any thunderstorm


Thunderstorms

Tuesday Night

47 °F

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


Thunderstorms

Wednesday

63 °F

Rather cloudy and cooler; a passing shower in the morning followed by a thunderstorm in the afternoon


Partly cloudy w/ t-storms

Wednesday Night

42 °F

Partly cloudy with a couple of showers and a thunderstorm


Intermittent clouds

Thursday

75 °F

Pleasant and warmer with times of clouds and sun


Mostly clear

Thursday Night

44 °F

Mainly clear


Mostly sunny

Friday

77 °F

Mostly sunny and warmer


Clear

Friday Night

46 °F

Clear


Sunrise and Sunset

Sunrise
5:46 AM
Sunset
8:08 PM

Based on AccuWeather data