The month of December is not only the last month of the calendar year but also the first month of winter. Winter officially begins at 4:38 in the afternoon on Dec. 21, according to the U.S. Navy.
The shortest days of the year occur in December, as the sun is only out for about 9 hours and 30 minutes on a given day.
December is Denver’s fourth-snowiest month, with an average of 8.7 inches. Despite having a lower average snowfall than November, some of Denver’s biggest and most memorable snowstorms have occurred in December. This includes the Christmas Eve and Christmas Day blizzard of 1982, with a record 23.6 inches of snow falling in a 24-hour period.
Average temperatures continue to become colder. The average high falls from 46 degrees on the 1st to 43 degrees on the 31st. The average low falls from 19 degrees on the 1st to 15 degrees on the 31st.
The record high is 79 degrees, set Dec. 5, 1939. The record low is 25 degrees below zero, set Dec. 22, 1990.
