Category: Climatology (Page 3 of 70)

These posts contain information about the long-term weather patterns of Boulder County. Potential topics may include 30-day weather outlooks, El Nino/La Nina, and seasonal forecasts. You will find less about the day-to-day weather, with more focus on longer trends and patterns.

Winter Storm Recap: A welcomed overachiever for portions of Denver and a healthy dump of moisture for all

March 7, 2026 / BoulderCAST Team

Our late‑week spring storm delivered a far more impressive performance than early models suggested. What looked like a modest, fast‑moving system slowed down, reorganized, and ultimately dumped a surprisingly healthy swath of heavy, wet snow across the Front Range. From booming Foothills totals to a rare over‑performance at DIA, this one had plenty of action worth unpacking. Let’s take a look at how the storm evolved, where our forecast missed the mark, and just how quickly we’ll be warming back into the 70s.

February 2026 Graphical Weather Review: Yet another exceptionally warm, dry and nearly snowless month of “winter”

March 4, 2026 / BoulderCAST Team

February 2026 ran exceptionally warm, dry, and almost snowless across the Front Range—another month that felt more like an early spring preview than the heart of winter. Warm spells were frequent, with multiple days soaring into the 60s and even low 70s, while true winter cold was only brief and muted. February was a month defined by sunshine, downslope winds, fire danger, and a striking lack of moisture. It was officially Boulders 3rd warmest and 9th driest February on record. Here’s a quick and colorful graphical recap of our weather during February and how it relates to climatology.

This Week in Colorado Weather: March 2, 2026

March 2, 2026 / Andy

Meteorological winter wrapped up in the most 2025–26 way possible: not with snow, but with a wildfire at the base of the Flatirons—an unsettling bookend to what has been Boulder’s warmest winter on record by a wide margin. This week keeps the volatility going, with a near‑record warm Monday, a sharp cool‑down and rain on Tuesday, and a second late‑week system that could bring snow for everyone depending on how the trough organizes. It’s a classic early‑March pattern with warm spells, cold fronts, and plenty of uncertainty. Read on as we break down what to expect throughout the highly variable week of weather ahead in the Front Range.

This Week in Colorado Weather: February 23, 2026

February 23, 2026 / Ben Castellani

As February limps toward the finish line, Colorado’s “winter” continues to behave like anything but. Last week the Mountains cashed in on a burst of Pacific moisture while the Denver Metro area stayed stubbornly snow‑starved. The week ahead brings more of that same split personality—warmth, wind, fire danger, and another round of Mountain snow. We break down the lopsided snow totals from last week, the updated but still troubling snowpack numbers, and discuss why this week will be so darn warm and windy again in the Front Range.

A Complete Failure of Winter Across the West — And What It Means for the Rest of 2026

February 20, 2026 / BoulderCAST Team

Winter may be on the calendar, but it certainly hasn’t been in the air this year. As the West stumbles through one of its warmest, most lopsided cold seasons on record, the signs of a deeper shift are becoming impossible to ignore. From record‑breaking heat along the Front Range to a snowpack crisis unfolding across the entire West, this “winter” has rewritten the rules — and the ripple effects are only beginning to surface. We break down what happened this year, why it matters, and what this complete failure of a winter means for the months ahead.

This Week in Colorado Weather: February 16, 2026

February 16, 2026 / Andy

As we roll into the new week, Colorado is staring down a remarkably busy stretch of weather — the kind that keeps both meteorologists and emergency managers on their toes. From dangerous fire conditions on the Plains to a multi‑day snow dump in the Mountains, the state is set to experience just about every flavor of February weather. A powerful longwave trough will anchor itself over the West through the week, sending repeated waves of wind, moisture, and cold our way. The result will be critical fire danger, high winds, heavy snow, and a late‑week cooldown. Let’s take a closer look at what’s coming and why this week could be one of the more impactful ones Colorado has seen so far this “winter” season.

This Week in Colorado Weather: February 9, 2026

February 9, 2026 / Ben Castellani

After weeks of spring-like warmth and quiet skies, the atmosphere is finally showing signs of waking up in the West. While drought continues to tighten its grip and Colorado’s snowpack sits at historic lows, things are beginning to stir, subtly at first, but with hints of something more promising on the horizon. This week brings our warmest day yet with Monday approaching 70 degrees, then a quick cooldown Tuesday, and finally the return of Mountain snow midweek courtesy of a weak atmospheric river. It’s not the pattern shift we need just yet, but it’s the most active stretch we’ve seen in a while… and it may be the first step toward rebuilding what winter has failed to deliver so far in the High Country. Let’s dig in.

January 2026 Graphical Weather Review: Another mild month on the Front Range with winter still nowhere to be found

February 5, 2026 / BoulderCAST Team

January 2026 wrapped up feeling more like an early taste of spring than the heart of winter along the Front Range, with warm spells, frequent downslope winds, and only fleeting brushes with snow. Boulder spent much of the month running well above normal, dodging storm after storm as the real winter weather stayed locked in the Mountains and across the eastern half of the country. Here’s a quick and colorful graphical recap of our weather during January and how it relates to climatology.