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In Brief:
Our first cold front is moving in to knock 5F off the temperatures and give the western slopes some rain/thundershowers. We'll mainly see increased clouds east of the Rockies with a possible sprinkle. A couple of additional cool fronts will lower us to the 70'sF for highs over the weekend with afternoon showers possible. Next week seems dominated by 70'sF weather for highs and better rain chances.
Forecast Discussion:
Our first cool front is on its way and is kicking off showers over the western counties of Colorado (Figure 1). Down slope flow on this side of the mountains will assure that very little water falls from the sky. By Wednesday morning, the front will be draped down the Front Range into the southeastern parts of the state. A bit more moisture will return behind the front (Figure 2).
The Longer Range Forecast:
Later in the week, a deeper trough starts its trek across the nation (Figure 3). This will kick a couple more cool fronts past us, cooling us to the 70'sF for the weekend. The warmth before the weekend will feel a contribution from that same down slope warming/drying we are experiencing today (Figure 4).
Next week, the trough seems to hold on (or get reinforced) and we stay cool with better rain chances returning (Figure 4). The GFS gives the somewhat dry western and southwestern parts of our state the best rainfall over the next 10 days (Figure 5).
