DENVER — Winter is making its presence known this week in the Denver metro area, and by Tuesday evening, the season’s familiar antics will be unmistakable.
An arctic blast will move into the area Monday night, bringing single-digit lows and a high chance of below-zero temperatures by Wednesday night.
We’ll see lows in the teens overnight on Monday and remain stuck in that ZIP code on Tuesday. On Wednesday, the arctic air will firmly entrench itself over the Front Range, bringing even colder temperatures.
Light snow will begin to develop in the mountains by Monday afternoon, but high temperatures will remain in the 30s. Travel impacts are expected to be minor.
However, more widespread snow will develop Tuesday afternoon and evening, continuing through Wednesday morning.
“That area of snow will spread southeast across the area through early Tuesday evening and then continue through Tuesday night before gradually diminishing Wednesday morning,” National Weather Service forecasters said.
Denver and the surrounding area should see 2-4 inches of accumulation by Wednesday when this system begins to move out. Heavier bands of snow are possible.
But as the snow moves out Wednesday, temperatures will drop.
“Clearing skies, fresh snow cover, and light winds Wednesday night all points to below zero low temperatures. We could (30-50% chance) see readings drop to around -10F or even a bit colder in some of the coldest low-lying spots on the plains as long as skies clear sufficiently,” the NWS said.
Wednesday night, Denver International Airport, where the official readings are recorded, should see below-zero temperatures. However, downtown Denver should be at or just above 0 degrees.
On Thursday, the arctic air will be gone, and temperatures should begin to resemble more average numbers for this time of the year.
Pacific moisture will bring moderate to heavy snow to the mountains late Thursday through Saturday. The models are uncertain about snow on the plains, with some showing light snow while others predict minimal accumulation.
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