The last time the daily high temperature was below 80 degrees in Denver, vouchers in Douglas County schools were legal, Bill Vidal was mayor and the unemployment rate was, well, where it still is (it hasn’t been that long).
But Saturday’s cool-down did end a record-setting 73 consecutive days of highs in the 80s.
“The streak is over,” said Frank Benton, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Boulder. Not only did Denver temperatures stay below 80 degrees, the high barely cracked the 70s, peaking at 71.
The last time Denver’s high stayed below 80 was June 21 with a high of 76 degrees. From that day on, temperatures climbed in a long, hot summer.
This year’s hot streak shattered the previous record in Denver of 59 consecutive days above 80, set in 2002.
It wasn’t the only weather record set this summer. August was the hottest August on record, breaking a record set in 1937, and the sixth-hottest Denver month ever. Six days in August set or tied high-temperature records.
But while Saturday was cool, today should be pleasant in the mid-70s. Temperatures are forecast to return to the low to mid-80s starting Monday.
Caitlin Gibbons: 303-954-1638 or cgibbons@denverpost.com
