The cyclone, which started taking shape early Tuesday morning, has caused widespread power outages, closed schools and downed trees that killed at least two people in the Pacific Northwest, according to the Associated Press.

Weather Prediction Center meteorologists said the storm has been spinning along the Pacific coast, bringing hurricane-force winds, rain and snow to Washington, Oregon and California.

While the bomb cyclone is expected to remain in the northwest, dying out without bringing heavy snow to Colorado, the low-pressure storm system will bring high pressure — and high temperatures — to the state on Friday and Saturday.

Normal temperature highs for late November in Denver range from 47 to 50 degrees, according to the National Weather Service.

Both Friday and Saturday will see near-record heat in the metro area with temperature highs in the mid-to-high 60s, peaking nearly 20 degrees above average, .

The current record for Nov. 22, set in 1998, is 74 degrees and the record for Nov. 23, set in 1915, is 73 degrees, .

NWS forecasters said the warm weather will be “” Sunday by a mix of rain and snow across Colorado.

“Light snow accumulations are expected in the mountains and none across the plains,” NWS forecasters said in a . “Another system will bring moderate snow to the mountains on Wednesday and Thanksgiving.”

Denver will see Sunday afternoon rainstorms turn to snow overnight as temperatures dip below freezing, but how much snow is expected to fall and whether it will impact Thanksgiving travel remains unknown, .

A bomb cyclone? A derecho? A black hole? Is Albany, with a metro population of 642,000, big enough to handle college sports’ two biggest TV phenomenons, converging on the banks of the Hudson River?

“The great thing about (Coach) Prime,” CU women’s basketball coach JR Payne reflected earlier this week, referencing the Buffs’ ubiquitous football icon, “besides all of the greatness that Prime brings with him, is that now the entire world is seeing what an incredible place the University of Colorado is.

“So, yeah, we love what we have here. We love what we’re going to continue to be able to build with our leadership. And we’ll certainly miss Chancellor Phil (DiStefano), but love the support that we have from (CU) President (Todd) Saliman. And, yeah, I just think the sky’s the limit.”

Payne deserves every second on this stage. And the eyeballs that are coming with it.

See, the Buffs aren’t just playing Iowa on Saturday afternoon in a rematch of last year’s NCAA tourney Sweet 16. Thanks to the Caitlin Effect, — in front of the most viewers, in all likelihood, to ever to watch a Buffs women’s sporting event. Heck, maybe any CU sporting event, period, outside of football.

“First and foremost, we’re (there to play) ball, but with that comes what you’re talking about, bringing awareness to the school,” said Buffs guard and former Valor Christian standout Kindyll Wetta. “And that this is a great university to come play basketball at, and hopefully get — we want tough, gritty players, not necessarily ‘top 50’ recruits. But yeah, (we want) to show the world what we’re about.”

They’re about defense. Determination. Doggedness. Dedication. Dauntlessness. Deion may be the front porch of CU athletics, but Payne’s Buffs are its fireplace, that eternal, crackling flame that fuels Final Four dreams.

CU’s five wins vs. AP Top 25 teams this season are the most over a single campaign since 2001-02, when the Buffs racked up six.

Payne’s 11 victories over ranked teams these last three years are the most the program’s seen over a 36-month stretch since Ceal Barry won 11 from 2001-04. CU is generational, inspirational, sensational and confrontational.

“We’re just happy to be playing and happy to — not have our backs against the wall, but happy to be the underdogs in these types of matchups,” said. “Because we want to upset people. We want to be the team that people count out.”

Hey, they’ve read the script. Topps recently announced it was . ESPN’s publishing a special 96-page commemorative magazine in her honor, set to hit your local Barnes & Noble on Friday. As fans of the Yankees, Red Sox, Dodgers, North Carolina, Duke, Alabama, Clemson, Cowboys, Lakers and Warriors can attest, once Disney decides it loves you, the world can either get on board or be ready to cover its collective mouse ears.

RELATED: Keeler: CU Buffs on opportunity to end Caitlin Clark’s Iowa Hawkeyes career: “We want to come in and ruin everyone’s day”

Iowa’s second-round win over West Virginia on The Worldwide Leader this past Monday reportedly averaged 4.9 million viewers and peaked at 6.4 million, making it the most-watched pre-Final Four women’s tourney game ever. The old record for a pre-Final Four average audience was 2.5 million, set by Iowa’s Elite Eight matchup with Louisville last March.

Even if ratings for CU-Iowa split that difference, and land in the 3.5-million-ish range, you’re staring at all kinds of history. Buffs-Hawkeyes in March 2023 reportedly drew 1.29 million viewers, CU’s demolition of defending national champ LSU on TNT this past November drew a reported 184,000 viewers, per SportsTVRatings.com.

“I think being on national television for this type of game with this type of magnitude is going to be incredible,” Payne said. “Because, like I said, this place is awesome. Anyone that’s been to Boulder, anyone that’s been throughout these facilities and spent time within our programs here knows that CU is a very special place. Our brand of style of play is fun. It’s exciting. And so I’m very, very excited for the world and especially recruits, future families that we want to recruit, to be able to see what we have going here.”

Payne isn’t much on flash. Or hype. Or bullies. CU’s coach was born Ali-Marie in Tennessee. Dad nicknamed her “JR” after the iconic Larry Hagman villain on the old “Dallas” television show, based on the way she refused to back down from a challenge. Whether it was from her older brothers or from opponents.

“I think if you have the right people in place,” Payne offered, “nothing can stop us.”

Not Clark. Not the Hawks. Not even Mickey. Although danged if they won’t try.

Want more sports news? Sign up for the Sports Omelette to get all our analysis on Denver’s teams.

Highlighting a few more impressive satellite animations of Hurricane Ida.

Sunrise to sunset GeoColor view of landfall.

— Dakota Smith (@weatherdak)

Ida was the 11th named storm, the fourth hurricane and the second major hurricane of the 2021 Atlantic hurricane season. And all forecasts call for more storms to form before the season “ends” on Nov. 30. Let’s take a minute and let the power of the storm that was just experienced by the Gulf Coast sink in.

1. Extreme winds at landfall

Ida made landfall in Port Fourchon, La., just before noon on Sunday. Coincidentally, Sunday was also the 16th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina back in 2005. With winds of 150 mph, Ida was the strongest hurricane to make landfall in Louisiana since … 2020 … when Laura came ashore with sustained winds of 150 mph. that hit the Louisiana coast in 1856 also came onshore with winds of 150 mph, so having back-to-back hurricane seasons with a storm of this magnitude is not only unlikely but exceedingly rare. There are only three other instances in Louisiana’s hurricane history where two intense hurricanes made landfall within two years time of each other.

• Unnamed Hurricane 1855 (Category 3) and unnamed 1856 (Category 4)
• Katrina (Category 3) and Rita (Category 3) in 2005
• Laura (Category 4) and Zeta (Category 3) in 2020 and now Ida (Category 4) 2021

2. Rapid Intensification

Rapid Intensification (RI) is when a tropical system strengthens 24 millibars (a unit of air pressure) within 24 hours or when a storm increases maximum sustained winds by 35 mph in a 24-hour period. Ida strengthened 56 millibars (mb) in a 24-hour period, smashing the meteorological definition by more than double. Ida’s winds increased 65 mph in that same 24-hour period, also smashing what the minimum definition states.

“This puts it in elite company as a top 10 RI rate in a day on record for the Atlantic Basin,” Alex DesRosiers, a graduate research assistant in the Department of Atmospheric Science at Colorado State University, said. “This is also the furthest north a pressure drop of this magnitude has occurred in an Atlantic hurricane.”

There is a lack of sufficient data relating to the rapid intensification of tropical cyclones but each year, more data is added and as it is added, the process of RI becomes more clear. The National Hurricane Center handles all forecasts for tropical systems in the Atlantic and the central and eastern Pacific. They were able to forecast the rapid intensification of Ida with near-perfect accuracy from three days out. It’s a sign that the science of meteorology is progressing and these types of storms are becoming more predictable to some degree.

WOW. Ship at Port Fourchon reported sustained wind of 149 mph and a gust to 172 mph.

— Steve Caparotta, Ph.D. (@SteveWAFB)

Some of Louisiana’s strongest storms have happened since 2000, a sign that this isn’t going to be a storm of rare occurrence.

“Evidence suggests that as our climate changes, the global average intensity of the strongest tropical cyclones is increasing,” DesRosiers said.

DesRosiers added that “the global proportion of cyclones reaching Category 4 or 5 intensity is increasing in recent decades.”

A theme between this hurricane season and last year is that storms have been tapping into the heat from the Gulf of Mexico, which has been running much warmer than normal. Hurricanes thrive off of warm ocean waters and when ocean water temperatures soar into the 80s to near 90 degrees, that is a prime source of energy for a cyclone to use. The combination of warm waters and light winds aloft allows storms to strengthen very quickly. As the Gulf of Mexico warms and the atmosphere becomes more conducive for storm development, “extreme” storms that wreak havoc on coastal communities may become the norm.

has made landfall with a central pressure of 930 hPa. Only Hurricane Katrina in 2005 made landfall in Louisiana with a lower pressure (920 hPa). Lower pressure equates to a stronger hurricane.

— Philip Klotzbach (@philklotzbach)

3. Record low central pressure vs. a Colorado bomb cyclone

Hurricanes are measured by their top wind speed but that wind speed is correlated to the central pressure of a storm — another unit of hurricane measurement and ultimately a better reference for a storm’s intensity. Ida came onshore with a central pressure of 930 mb. For Louisiana, Ida had the second-lowest pressure for a landfalling hurricane in that state. Hurricane Katrina in 2005 was the only storm to have lower central pressure. Katrina came onshore with a central pressure of 920 mb.

As a reference, a sunny day here in Colorado has a central pressure of about 1,010 mb. The bomb cyclone Colorado experienced in March 2019 had a central pressure of 970.4 mb — the equivalent of a Category 2 hurricane. A bomb cyclone has a similar definition as rapid intensification. When a winter cyclone strengthens by 24 mb in 24 hours, it’s considered to be a bomb cyclone — more scientifically known as explosive cyclongenesis.

This is the power of Storm Surge. Check out Grand Isle, Louisiana. Ida made landfall shortly after the last video, just west of Grand Isle. All times Central.

— Kevin Clamato (@KevinClamato)

4. Double-digit storm surge

Storm surge, one of the deadliest components of hurricanes, came in with a vengeance. The expected 9 to 12 feet of storm surge Hurricane Ida produced submerged buildings and crossed over levees and trapped people in their attics and on their roofs. This same surge of water was being pushed into all of the outflowing rivers in this region. Many rivers, including the great Mississippi, actually saw the water flow reverse for a short time. The winds of Ida were so strong that the water was being pushed back upstream causing more issues with flooding and stressing levee systems even more.

For several hours today, the winds & storm surge from made the Mississippi River flow *backwards* (negative discharge rate in the graph).

— Brian Olson (@mrbrianolson)

A river flow reverse like this is not common but it has happened before. Hurricane Isaac in 2012 produced this same phenomenon, as did a few other storms, but Ida is definitely joining a small group of storms that had the power and potential to do this.

5. Life after landfall

Another amazing feat that Ida accomplished was maintaining its strength well after landfall. Since cyclones feed off of warm waters, once it gets over land the storm should start to weaken dramatically, but Ida didn’t. Ida remained a major hurricane for several hours after landfall and maintained hurricane strength for an impressive amount of time.

There are two reasons for this.

“The first being the storm was rapidly intensifying at the time of landfall. Hurricanes in the process of intensifying take longer to begin weakening when encountering adverse conditions.” DesRosiers said. “The second reason is a phenomenon coined the ‘Brown Ocean Effect.’ The idea is that Southeastern Louisiana is composed of swamps, wetlands and saturated soils from heavy repetitive rains this year beginning long before Ida. This provided an energy source allowing Ida to maintain its structure and intensity further inland.”

Forecast

There are still more than three months remaining of the 2021 hurricane season and peak season is still a couple of weeks away. More storms with more Rapid Intensification and power may be in the forecast. CSU issues hurricane season forecasts every year and updates them multiple times a month during the season. Accounting for the activity that has already taken place in the Atlantic basin, “the CSU seasonal forecast calls for seven additional storms, four of these reaching hurricane intensity and two of those reaching major hurricane (Category 3 or higher) status,” DesRosiers said.

For those along the southeast coast of Louisiana, this hurricane season has already been an extremely emotional and violent ride which proves that it only takes one storm to greatly impact you. More than a million customers remain without power in Louisiana and Mississippi. As with every hurricane season, it only takes one storm for it to be a memorable one and unfortunately, there may be others that have to face their own tropical threats in the coming months. ]]> /2021/08/31/how-strong-was-hurricane-ida/feed/ 0 4729026 2021-08-31T06:00:06+00:00 2021-08-30T22:16:38+00:00 /2020/05/29/colorado-weather-record-pressure-cyclone/ /2020/05/29/colorado-weather-record-pressure-cyclone/#respond Fri, 29 May 2020 12:00:24 +0000 /?p=4105793 After a lengthy assessment of station sites and observations, the Colorado Climate Center officially determined that Colorado set a new statewide pressure record during last March’s bomb cyclone.

On March 13th, 2019, the barometric pressure in Lamar dropped down to 970.4 millibars, setting a new statewide record in the process.

“A thorough investigation of available records indicated that (970.4 millibars) was the lowest mean sea level pressure (MSLP) ever observed in Colorado at a trusted weather station,” on the record earlier this month. “Based on the evaluation of the available information and evidence, the (State Climate Extremes Committee, or SCEC) determined the observation of 970.4 hPa to be valid and moved to establish an inaugural Colorado state record for lowest MSLP.”

The reason this new record is significant is that central pressure is, roughly, the measurement of the strength of a given storm. The lower the central pressure, typically, the stronger the overall storm system – and that often means the stronger the winds associated with a storm.

Pressures as low as 970 millibars are typically associated , not a spring snowstorm. Hurricanes and tropical systems gain their energy from warm tropical ocean water, while land-driven storms like the bomb cyclone get most of their power from temperature differences. However, temperature differences over land hardly ever produce a storm as strong as the bomb cyclone.

The record-setting Lamar reading took place on the morning that the bomb cyclone moved through the state. The storm was primarily noted for its winds, although it also dumped several inches of blizzard-driven snow along the Front Range and throughout central and eastern Colorado.

The lengthy Colorado Climate Center review process involved investigating the weather observation site, assessing historical records and determining whether or not past pressure readings were accurate or not.

Because this is the “inaugural” statewide pressure level record, the historical component of the assessment lengthened the amount of time it took to verify Lamar’s pressure reading as the new state record.

“Because there has not previously been an official record low pressure, and historical records of pressure observations are less consistent than for other variables such as temperature and precipitation, numerous methods were employed to identify whether this was the lowest recorded pressure at a station known to be valid,” the report said.

The National Weather Service office in Pueblo also helped ensure the accuracy of the data.

Last year, a slew of statewide weather records were broken by the so-called bomb cyclone, which blasted parts of Colorado with feet of snow and epic winds on March 13 and 14.

A powerful storm system, primarily fueled by moisture from the Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico along with a huge clash of temperatures, delivered wind gusts up to 96 mph in Colorado Springs and 80 mph in Denver. That, in turn, led to nearly half a million Colorado customers without power, and all major interstates were shut down outside of Denver. Denver International Airport all but closed on March 13, with nearly 1400 flights canceled by the storm alone.

The bomb cyclone’s legacy won’t necessarily live in just its snow totals, though some parts of Colorado did see as much as 45 inches of snow from the storm. The storm’s sheer strength and strong winds combined to leave a lasting meteorological impression, along with a catchy phrase to describe this epic storm: the bomb cyclone.

On the morning of March 12, 2019, the barometric pressure at the Denver airport was approximately 1010 millibars. Twenty-four hours later, the pressure had dropped a whopping 30 millibars, easily clearing .

To be a bomb cyclone, the central pressure of a storm must drop by 24 millibars or more in 24 hours. In other words, it’s an unusually rapidly strengthening storm system. Storms of this magnitude rarely happen in Colorado.

On the morning of March 13, the barometric pressure in Lamar dropped down to 970.4 millibars, setting a new state record for the lowest recorded pressure level. The lower the pressure, in general, the stronger the overall storm.

But, the storm will ultimately be remembered more for its winds more than anything else. The 96-mph gust in Colorado Springs made it the city’s strongest wind gust ever recorded. Denver’s 80-mph wind during the storm made it the city’s strongest recorded gust since a June 2013 tornado directly hit the airport.

One Colorado state trooper was killed on Interstate 76 in the middle of the storm.

Snow-wise, Denver officially received only 7.1 inches of snow from the system, based on official observations at Denver International Airport. But, some parts of Colorado saw more than four feet worth of snowfall (Wolf Creek Pass saw 52 inches, the storm’s highest statewide total). In eastern Colorado, blizzard conditions whipped up snow drifts that piled up to four feet in a few locations.

The National Weather Service has .

The bomb cyclone came in as The Post’s top weather event of 2019 and Denver’s most powerful March snowstorm on record as well. And it all took place a year ago today.

Out of Denver’s top-20 snowstorms on record, five of them have come during the month of March. That includes the city’s second-largest snowstorm on record, and of course, last March’s bomb cyclone. More on both of those later.

First things first: as you might already know, March is Denver’s snowiest month of the year, with a monthly average of 11.4 inches of snowfall. This is mostly due to huge, hit-or-miss variety snowstorms that can sometimes drop feet of snow in just a matter of a few days. In typical Denver fashion, though, they’re often bookended by 60- or even 70-degree days. April and even May can bring Denver some of its notorious spring blizzards, but March is usually king for Denver snowstorms.

Since March in Denver is so often synonymous with major Front Range snowstorms, here’s a look at the top ones:

5. “Snow Clasico,” March 2013

This 11.7-inch snowstorm came right in the middle of an exceptionally snowy 2012-13 winter season, which included more than 5 feet of snow between February and May of early 2013.

But sports fans might ultimately have the fondest memories from this March storm. The U.S. men’s national team famously played a World Cup soccer qualifier at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in the middle of the storm, controversially defeating Costa Rica 1-0 on a snow-covered field. Costa Rica players and officials complained about the state of the snowy field after the game was over, and one U.S. player even jokingly helped an stadium worker clear a line in the snow in the middle of the game.

4. March 20-22, 1944

A total of 18.5 inches of snow fell over this three-day snowstorm, making it Denver’s 13th-largest snowstorm on record.

Another 14 inches of snow fell in March 1944, and the 32.5-inch monthly snow total still has it as Denver’s second-snowiest March on record.

3. March 5-6, 1983

This two-day storm dropped 18.7 inches of snow on Denver, which would become the main storm during Denver’s fourth-snowiest March on record.

And of course, in classic Colorado fashion, it got up to 68 degrees just three days before this huge snowstorm.

2. March 17-19, 2003

Denver’s second-biggest snowstorm on record took place back in 2003, dumping a whopping 31.7 inches of snow over three days on the city.

Some parts of the metro area saw as much as 72.9 inches of snow — that’s more than 6 feet — over the three-day span. But perhaps what stands out about this specific storm was the relatively high water content in the snow itself. An astronomical 4.56 inches of precipitation fell over just four days from this gigantic storm, more than four times the March average and about a third of Denver’s average annual precipitation.

The high water content exponentially increased the weight of the snow itself, weighing down trees, power lines and even roofs, which in insurance claims after the storm.

1. Bomb cyclone, March 2019

When it comes to March snowstorms, last year’s bomb cyclone shouldn’t be on this list when it comes down to snow totals alone. An official total of “only” 7.1 inches of snow fell at Denver International Airport from this storm certainly qualifies as a significant snow event, but far from the top spot in Denver’s top snow month of the year.

But when you factor in everything — including a new statewide pressure level, a 96-mph wind gust in Colorado Springs, an 80-mph gust in Denver — it’s little wonder why this tops our list. This was a storm unlike any other, complete with ferocious winds, a statewide record pressure level and snow totals that reached 45 inches in parts of Colorado. The storm all but snarled air and road travel across eastern Colorado for two days, mainly owing to the ferocious winds that knocked out power to more than 121,000 people across Colorado.

It’s little wonder why last March’s bomb cyclone won’t soon be forgotten, and why it tops our list for Denver’s top March snowstorm.

With an average annual temperature of 49.6 degrees, 2019 finished as a slightly colder-than-average year in Denver, although by most definitions it wasn’t an especially chilly 365-day stretch.

That said, 2019 was a year often defined by cold weather events: the bomb cyclone in March, the unusual May 21-22 snowstorm along the Front Range, and a huge snowpack 2018-19 winter for the mountains.

The end result was that Denver finished with an average annual temperature that ran nearly a degree below the long-term average, and it resulted in the city’s coldest overall year since 1997, when the average annual temperature was 48.7 degrees.

But this could all easily be interpreted a different way: Denver’s last 20-plus years have been unusually hot. According to the National Weather Service office in Boulder, 2019 wasn’t “excessively cold or wet”. All in all, 2019 was a fairly average year, at least by long-term climatological standards. The 49.6-degree mark was less than a degree colder than the long-term (148-year) average annual temperature of 50.5 degrees.

Denver's 2019 Average Temperature & Precipitation:
Not excessively warm or dry. Not excessively cold or wet.

2019 Average Temp came in at 49.6°, which is 0.9° below the 148 yr Avg of 50.5°

2019 Total Precip was 15.51", which is 1.03" above the 148 yr Avg of 14.48"

— NWS Boulder (@NWSBoulder)

Temperatures have risen across the world in recent years due to global warming, and temperatures over the last 30 years have run about a half-degree warmer than average in Denver as a result as well. Since 1990, Denver’s official temperatures have run 0.5 degrees warmer than the long-term (148-year) average. That’s made years like 2019 harder to come by in recent years: despite the fact that 2019 was less than a degree below average, it was only the sixth year (out of 20) of below-average annual temperatures in Denver since 2000. None of those six years have featured temperatures a degree or more below the long-term average, while eight of the last 20 years have seen temperatures a degree or more above average.

On the precipitation side of things, Denver officially received some good news, although that could also be interpreted a different way: 15.51 inches of precipitation (rain and snowfall-equivalent moisture) fell at Denver International Airport in 2019. That’s about an inch above the long-term average, and the wettest year since 2015. That 15.51-inch rain total was also nearly double the 2018 total of 8.53 inches of official moisture at DIA.

At the climate location at Denver’s old Stapleton Airport, however, only 12.64 inches of rain fell, pointing to fairly variable 2019 precipitation figures across the Denver area, mostly due to the exact placement of summer thunderstorms.

But, despite the Stapleton figure, Colorado generally saw plenty of moisture in 2019, as evidenced by a big improvement in drought conditions from the start of the calendar year.

Though 2019 leaned wet and cool along the Front Range, it differentiated from overall long-term trends.

But forget about those records for just a second: 2019 was an overall wild year of weather in a state that’s pretty well known for its wild weather. Despite climate change boosting temperatures and reducing precipitation over the long term, 2019 will probably be best remembered for an epic winter filled with big winter storms (and a fast start to the 2019-2020 winter, as well), cold temperatures and mountain snowpack lasting deep into summer.

The warm season, though, produced a few tornadoes, one record-setting hailstorm and plenty of late-summer heat. Temperatures soared to 100 degrees in Denver for the first time ever on record in the month of September, and it was also the state’s hottest September on record.

With all of that in mind, here’s a look at Colorado’s top weather events from 2019:

8. Avalanches

A string of avalanches in January, February and March shut down roads, including Interstate 70. At least 2,000 avalanches tore through Colorado last winter and, unfortunately, that had deadly consequences.

, and an additional fatality was recorded earlier this month in Larimer County. The eight fatalities made the 2018-19 winter Colorado’s deadliest avalanche season since the winter of 2012-13.

7. Hottest temperature on record (July)

On July 20, the mercury soared to a whopping 115 degrees at the John Martin Dam near Lamar, clinching the state’s hottest temperature reading on record. A lengthy confirmation process by the Colorado Climate Center verified the record, which beat the old 114-degree record from 1933 and 1954.

Perhaps the best part of this record: It was accidentally discovered by a Washington, D.C.-based meteorologist on social media. Here’s how that happened.

6. The Non-Soon (August-September)

It was an exceptionally dry August and September, particularly across southern Colorado, largely owing to a virtually non-existent monsoon season. After a brief (and rare) break from drought conditions, drought officially returned to southern Colorado last summer.

Even after a fast start to the winter season across the state, .

5. Latest 100-degree reading on record in Denver (September)

On Sept. 2 (Labor Day), Denver’s temperature hit 100 degrees, making it — by far — the latest 100-degree reading on record in the city. The previous latest 100-degree day was on Aug. 16, 2002. In eastern Colorado, the mercury soared all the way up to 104 degrees in Fort Morgan that day as well.

The scorching heat was aided by the positioning of two hurricanes — yes, hurricanes — including deadly Hurricane Dorian. Here’s how that worked.

4. Late May snow

Having 3.7 inches of Denver snow usually isn’t a big deal, but when it takes place on May 21 and 22, it sure is.

It was Denver’s latest snowstorm of 3 inches or greater since 1975, and it was only the fifth time on record that Denver had seen a snowstorm that large that late into the winter season.

3. Largest hailstone in Colorado’s recorded history (August)

A 4.83-inch diameter hailstone was observed in Bethune on Aug. 13, and it was later confirmed to be Colorado’s largest hailstone ever recorded. Miraculously, the hailstone only caused minor damage. That was part of an overall wild week of mid-August weather, including twin tornadoes, huge hail and dozens of statewide severe weather reports.

2. Snowpack deep into summer (May-July)

The snow started in February, and it didn’t stop until June. Colorado’s mountains got hammered with snow through much of the late winter and through the spring, setting up one of the latest full melts of Colorado snowpack on record.

At one point, Colorado’s snowpack was at 751% of average. That helped replenish reservoirs after back-to-back subpar snow seasons in the mountains, and it also helped to mostly stave off wildfires last summer.

1. Bomb cyclone (March)

This is a storm that’ll be etched into locals’ memories for decades to come. While snowfall totals from this huge storm won’t stand out (generally 6 to 10 inches across the Denver area), it was the wild wind that truly set this storm apart.

Colorado Springs recorded its strongest wind gust on record (a 96-mph gust), and Denver International Airport saw winds howl up to 80 mph, shutting down the airport’s runways for just the fourth time in history. The storm’s winds and snow all but shut down road travel for a 24-hour period, due to a combination of the incredibly strong winds and heavy snowfall.

The storm also led to the state’s lowest pressure reading on record, a 970-millibar reading in Lamar, a key indicator of the storm’s overall strength.

With an through Tuesday, Denver will likely clinch its coldest overall year since 1997, based on official data from the National Weather Service. That 50.9-degree average annual temperature is about a half degree behind the climatological year-to-date average (51.5 degrees).

February, March, May, June, October and November all finished with below-average monthly temperature readings in Denver, including particularly cold months compared to average in March, May and October.

The overall picture is a bit different when you branch out and include all of Colorado. Through November, Colorado’s statewide average temperature was 46.8 degrees, which is actually 0.5 degrees above the long-term (1901-2000) average. That’s based on . That said, it’s still cold enough that 2019 will likely finish as Colorado’s coldest statewide year since 2008 — though that’s probably more of a comment on the recent trend of overall warming temperatures.

But even with a big winter season filled with near-record snowpack levels, Colorado’s statewide average temperature reading is still about a half-degree above average, based on the statewide 11-month average temperature from January through November. That’s likely in part due to a milder year across southern Colorado, where an overall dry monsoon season allowed temperatures to stay warmer through the late summer and early fall time period.

Colorado’s relatively chilly 2019 — at least compared to recent years — is a sharp turn from the recent run of considerably warmer-than-average years both in Denver and statewide, including five of the seven hottest years in Colorado. Colorado’s hottest year on record came in 2012, with an average statewide temperature of 50.4 degrees that year. In addition to 2012, 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018 also finished among Colorado’s top-seven warmest months in the 125 years of NCEI records.

Before comparing Colorado weather extremes and Dorian, it’s important to note that while Dorian’s fury was off-the-charts, this is a far from perfect analysis. Tropical cyclones have a completely different formation process than, for example, March’s bomb cyclone, a Front Range windstorm, a mountain snowstorm or a severe weather outbreak on the eastern plains. There is a large degree of apples and oranges in a meteorological comparison on this magnitude, but there are points of identifiable similarity that may help better bring Hurricane Dorian’s power to light.

So here goes.

When Dorian made its first landfall on Sunday, its maximum sustained winds – a sustained wind is an average wind speed over a minute – were 185 miles-per-hour (mph), .

For comparison, the strongest wind ever recorded in Colorado is a 148 mph gust on Monarch Pass in February 2016. Dorian’s wind gusts were estimated to be around 220 mph when it made landfall in the Bahamas on Sunday, .

Dorian’s 220 mph winds likely put its peak gusts around the level of Colorado’s strongest tornado on record, . That tornado was rated as an F-4 on the old Fujita Scale, meaning that tornado contained estimated winds between 207 to 260 mph.

More recently, when it tore through Weld County in 2008. While comparing tornadoes and hurricane winds is not exactly a one-for-one exercise – winds in a tornado have a twisting vertical velocity component to them that hurricanes don’t – it is worthwhile to consider the stunning length of time that parts of the Bahamas had to deal with wind speeds that rivaled Colorado’s strongest tornadoes on record.

Of course, a tornado’s winds usually will last in one spot for only for a few seconds, while a landfalling hurricane’s top winds may last as long as a few hours. In Dorian’s rather unique case, one of the storm’s features was how slow it was moving as it passed through the northern Bahamas. In fact, for most of Monday, it was entirely stationary as it slogged through Grand Bahama Island, despite containing wind speeds well over 100 mph.

“Imagine being in an EF-3 or EF-4 tornado for hours on end,” said Metro State meteorology professor Dr. Sam Ng.

For further context, in recent memory, March’s record-setting bomb cyclone produced a peak wind gust of 104 mph in northern New Mexico, a 97 mph gust in Colorado Springs and a peak gust of 80 mph in Denver. These peak gusts lasted a few seconds, while Dorian’s winds over the Bahamas were considerably stronger than the bomb cyclone’s – while lasting for approximately 18-24 hours.

It’s also worth noting that winds become exponentially more damaging as they increase in speed, not to mention over a longer period of time.

UPDATE: A 185mph Category 5 is *1,371 TIMES* more destructive than a 75mph Category 1 hurricane. The wind damage multiplier is EXPONENTIAL to wind speed.

— Kathryn Prociv (@KathrynProciv)

Not only do winds well over of 100 mph create widespread damage, but the Bahamas, of course, are surrounded by water. That led to a massive storm surge – the wall of water created by the hurricane’s intense winds – that flooded the low-lying Grand Bahama and Abaco Islands. It’s believed Dorian’s storm surge on the northern Bahamas may have been as high as 20-to-25 feet, and most of the affected islands only sit 10-to-20 feet above sea level.

And the results, unfortunately, reflect these sobering statistics. While March’s bomb cyclone in Colorado largely led to nuisance-type impacts primarily consisting of power outages, snarled traffic and business closures, Dorian led to an unmitigated catastrophe on two separate islands. The official death toll in the Bahamas was 43 as of Saturday, though it was expected to rise to “staggering” levels.

While comparing Hurricane Dorian with any Colorado weather phenomenon is admittedly far from perfect and challenging, perhaps the best way to think of it would be to take Colorado’s strongest tornado on record and place it over the same area over a period of several hours. Then, surround Colorado with water and then inundate it with a catastrophic storm surge.

If you’re looking to help the Bahamas, .