Wild Inversion Pushed Denver's Temperature Up 40 Degrees In 4 Hours
By Chris Spears
DENVER (CBS4) - The weather on Saturday in Denver was just one of the many reasons why I love forecasting in this state.
You probably noticed the chilly start to the day which was followed by a rapid warm up in most areas.
The crazy jump on the thermometer can be blamed on a strong temperature inversion in the atmosphere.
Cold air at the ground was trapped by much warmer air above. In fact at one point Saturday morning it was 32 degrees warmer less than a quarter mile above the ground.
We are expecting Denver to see a 50° increase in temp in less than 12 hours today going from the morning low of 36° to a high of 86°! Why? Because there is plenty of warm air just above the surface this morning ready to come down. #COwx pic.twitter.com/DKwwrCDIdU
— NWS Boulder (@NWSBoulder) September 29, 2018
Once the sun came up Saturday it started a process called convection, which is a mixing of the lower atmosphere. It only took a few hours for the warmer air to mix down to the ground.
40 degree swing in 4 hours! Isn't that cool?!? #COwx #4wx pic.twitter.com/mQClOVyzmf
— Chris Spears (@ChrisCBS4) September 29, 2018
According to the National Weather Service in Boulder, temperature swings of 48 degrees or more in Denver are rare, and have only happened 191 times since 1872.
After a sharp morning inversion where temps were ~32° warmer just 1/4 mi above the surface, the high at DIA eventually reached 84° after a low of 36°. Temp spreads of 48°+ are rare, but do occur in areas w/sharp terrain. Here's the full dist of Denver's daily temp spreads. #COwx pic.twitter.com/Fqkf0XPRMX
— NWS Boulder (@NWSBoulder) September 29, 2018
Meteorologist Chris Spears travels weekly in the CBS4 Mobile Weather Lab reporting about Colorado's weather and climate. Check out his bio, connect with him on Facebook or follow him on Twitter @ChrisCBS4.