It sure looks like March is coming in like a lion, or at least meteorologically speaking.
Denver’s snowiest month of the year will start with, you guessed it, more snow. Starting on Sunday evening, 1 to 4 inches of slushy snow will usher another wave of accumulating snowfall into the Front Range. While snow amounts in Denver are looking light overall, it’ll probably affect Monday morning’s commute across the metro area.
“Expect slippery roads to persist into (Monday) morning commute times, even as snow ends during the early morning hours Monday,” the National Weather Service office in Boulder .
A cold front and a wave of Pacific moisture will combine to provide just enough cold air and lift to create accumulating snow on Sunday night into Monday morning. After perhaps initially starting as a rain-snow mix on Sunday afternoon, the precipitation will switch over to all snow after dark on Sunday, leading to a few snow showers lingering into early Monday morning.
Travel is not advised around the Denver area on Sunday night after dark. The worst of the snow will likely fall between 6 p.m. and midnight on Sunday evening, with localized bursts of heavy snow potentially setting up on Sunday night as well. That could lead to a few areas on the higher end of the forecast snowfall scale, and higher road impacts as well.
Denver itself and most of the immediate metro area will probably end up closer to the one-inch side of the 1- to 4-inch forecast scale, although localized snow bands will probably deliver closer to four inches of total accumulation in a few areas.
The highest snowfall amounts will come in the northern mountains, along with the foothills west of Denver. Here, 3-6 inches of snow could fall, with perhaps some locally higher amounts in the mountain ranges north of Interstate 70.
The biggest question with this snow event will likely revolve around temperatures, or at least initially. After a mild Saturday that featured a high near 60 degrees in Denver, a cold front will move through during the Sunday afternoon time frame, dropping temperatures from a high of around 50 degrees down into the mid 30s by dusk on Sunday night. While snow will likely fall fairly quickly after the precipitation starts on Sunday, it’ll struggle to accumulate initially due to the mild temperatures, and relatively warm surfaces thanks in part to Friday and Saturday’s balmy weather.
Road accumulations aren’t expected for most until after dark on Sunday, when both nighttime skies and colder temperatures will combine to create a more favorable environment for snow to stick on all surfaces.
This next wave of snow follows the 11th-snowiest February on record, with 16.5 inches of snow officially at Denver International Airport through Friday. Denver , and 7.7 inches each February.
If you’re getting sick of all the snow, however, the overall pattern after this snow event looks to favor a drier and warmer stretch. Temperatures should rebound back into the 50s by Tuesday, and into the 60s likely by Wednesday or Thursday. Next weekend looks mild as well, with highs well into the 60s and sunny skies for Friday and Saturday.
