Blockbuster snowstorm could bring blizzard conditions to Denver

A major snowstorm is set to slam the Denver metro area, with totals that are likely to be measured in feet rather than inches. The storm, set to affect the region from the Colorado foothills to southeastern Wyoming and parts of the High Plains on Friday through Sunday, could tie or break snowfall records in Denver; Boulder, Colo.; and Cheyenne, Wyo. How severe the snowstorm becomes will depend on its exact intensity, path and speed.

Already, the National Weather Service forecast office in Denver is predicting that between 1 to 3 feet of snow is likely to fall across the region, with the highest amounts falling in the foothills as winds blowing from east to west allow air to be lifted up and over the mountains.

This has the effect of increasing precipitation rates in a process known as orographic lift, with computer models suggesting snow totals of greater than 50 inches potentially falling in higher elevations such as Golden, Colo.

While much of the rest of the country is moving to spring, Denver’s typical weather during the month of March is similar to a roller coaster, and it’s often the city’s snowiest month. One day temperatures will be in the 70s, and the next it’ll be snowing and in the 30s.

The storm that is expected to evolve into an unusually prolific snow producer in Colorado, Wyoming and potentially other states, is swirling ashore over California. It consists of a circulating area of low pressure in the upper levels of the atmosphere, containing a reservoir of cold air aloft that makes the atmosphere unstable.

According to virtually every reliable computer model, the storm is likely to be an outlier even among the high end of front-range snowstorms. Part of the reason will be its ability to tap into deep layers of moisture from the south and west, injecting it into a cold air mass as well as at higher elevations. Some models show an unusually strong airflow moving from east to west, slamming against the Rockies at a 90-degree angle, though this is not unanimous among all the model guidance.

Strong winds are likely to develop across the eastern Plains with this storm, potentially leading to blizzard conditions, from near Limon, Colo., north to southeastern Wyoming from Friday to Sunday. Travel is likely to be impossible in these areas during that time frame, as it could be in the foothills of the Rockies as well.

In a forecast discussion Wednesday morning, the weather service in Denver detailed the model similarities and differences for this storm, and said the forecast still appears to be “on track” for 1 to 3 feet of snow across the region.