Marty’s Thursday Evening Forecast – Quick Burst of Snow? – 1/30/2020
Overview: We’re tracking a fast-moving cold front that may bring a short, but possibly intense burst of wind-driven snow down the I-25 corridor this evening before exiting the area by early Friday morning. We’re expecting a much warmer weekend with some periods of wind. A strong and very cold storm should impact the area early next week bringing many of us another chance for snow.
This Evening: A fast-moving cold front will sweep south over the area this evening bringing wind gusts over 30 mph to many of us, and possibly an intense burst of snow to some of us. The best chances for accumulating snow this evening will exist along and west of I-25, and if the snow does materialize then the higher amounts will likely fall on the higher terrain. The short duration of the snowfall would limit accumulations to 1”- 2” for most areas where the snow could fall, but some spots on the higher terrain to the southwest of Pueblo (Rye, San Isabel, Beulah, Cuchara) could receive as much as 3”- 6”. Although snowfall accumulations will remain rather light for many of us, the combination of wind, snowfall rates, and quickly falling temperatures could lead to a period of poor visibility and quickly whitening/icy roadways through the evening commute even around Colorado Springs proper. Be prepared for rapidly changing weather conditions across parts of the area this evening.
Tonight: Where snow developed it will end quickly from north to south with a clear sky for most areas by morning. The wind will also decrease although we expect breezy conditions east of the mountains into Friday morning. We expect the air will cool into the teens and 20s for the plains with some single digits over our local mountain areas.
Friday: We’ll start the day out chilly but should be mostly sunny and breezy at times during the afternoon with temperatures eventually warming into the 40s and 50s for most areas.
Extended: We are tracking a significant warm-up for the weekend with high temperatures warming into the 60s and 70s by Sunday. Expect periods of high cloud cover or some mountain wave clouds this weekend as well as some periods of wind. We are tracking a strong, very cold storm that will begin to affect the area on Monday. Initially, we expect increasing clouds and colder air Monday morning with increasing chances for snow as the day progresses. Snow could last into Monday night when travel conditions will probably be most difficult. Scattered, mainly light snow showers might linger into Tuesday for some areas. The other big story early next week will be the chilly air that settles over the area with afternoon temperatures only in the teens and 20s on Tuesday and low temperatures in the single digits above and below zero Tuesday night. We should warm slowly through the end of the week which looks dry right now.
