Will I Get Rain Or Snow Tonight & Tomorrow In Denver?
By Chris Spears
DENVER (CBS4) - Am I getting rain or snow?
The answer is likely both, but it highly depends on an imaginary line in the atmosphere.
While most people look at the current temperature to decide if it will rain or snow that actually has nothing to do with the answer.
The current air temperature will only tell you the fate of rain or snow once it lands on the ground, meaning will it freeze or melt.
The determining factor is actually the air temperatures between you and the clouds, and while we expect it to get cooler with height that isn't always the case.
Needless to say it makes finding the rain/snow line a difficult challenge.
It'd be much easier if we measured air temperatures in the sky every hour on the hour like we do at the ground, but atmospheric air temperatures are only taken twice a day from less than 100 places around the United States.
In Colorado, it's usually safe to say it will likely be cold enough for all snow above 7,000 feet and all rain or mostly rain below 5,000 feet.
But in between there's an elusive rain/snow line that is constantly on the move because the atmosphere is always in motion.
The result can be a real mixed bag for those who live in between and that just happens to be the majority of Colorado's population in the Denver metro area.
As of Thursday afternoon the forecast for Denver called for precipitation to start as rain, change to snow at some point early Friday, go back to rain during the afternoon and then back to snow again by early Saturday.
With this newest round of snow the most accumulations will be found in the Front Range mountains and foothills with lighter amounts in Denver on grassy surfaces.
Areas along the Palmer Divide, such as Castle Rock, Parker, Elizabeth and southeast Aurora could also see some slushy accumulations by Saturday.
Some locations may see a rain/snow mix and never experience any accumulation.
There could be some travel troubles in elevations above 7,000 feet but roads should mostly stay wet and slushy for metro Denver.
Spring snows are heavy and wet and there is a lot of melting, both initially and during the day because April sunshine is strong and solar energy can still get through the clouds.
Before all is said and done this storm system could drop 1 to 3 inches of water along and east of the Continental Divide.
Meteorologist Chris Spears writes about stories related to weather and climate in Colorado. Check out his bio, connect with him on Facebook or follow him on Twitter @ChrisCBS4.