The photo above was taken on an early morning drive to the Denver International Airport late last month. As you can see, there is no snow on the high plains or in the foothills, and there has been very little snow accumulation in the Colorado Rocky Mountains this winter!
Denver didn’t get its first snow until Nov. 29, the second latest first snow on record, and it was only 0.2 inches.
Temperatures around the Colorado Front Range have also been downright balmy, drawing close to, or even setting, record highs.
It was 70 F degrees (21.11 C) in Denver on Christmas Day!
A persistent pattern of high pressure over the western U.S. has been the main driver behind both the warmth and the lack of snow, effectively blocking Pacific storms that typically help build Colorado's snowpack.
Natural climate patterns from the Pacific, such as "La Niña, " are also contributing factors.
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA), during La Niña events, trade winds are even stronger than usual, pushing more warm water toward Asia. Off the west coast of the Americas, upwelling increases, bringing cold, nutrient-rich water to the surface. These cold waters in the Pacific push the jet stream northward. This tends to lead to drought in the southern U.S. and heavy rains and flooding in the Pacific Northwest and Canada. During a La Niña year, winter temperatures are warmer than normal in the South and cooler than normal in the North. La Niña can also lead to a more severe hurricane season.
My front lawn is usually covered with deep snow by this time of the year.
Instead, this winter, it is full of deer enjoying the cool shade!
The few snowfalls we have had so far are light and melt quickly as the ground is warm and dry. The Rockies are at 50% of the snowpack they need, and I heard today that they will need five to eight feet of snow (2.4M) just to catch up to normal!
If we, and the other Western states, end up with really low snowpack numbers, water supplies will be greatly compromized and that could eventually lead to water restrictions, increased wildfire risk, and challenges for agriculture later this year.
Colorado’s snowpack typically peaks in early April, as March and April are historically the snowiest months in our region. Weather patterns may shift as La Niña weakens toward neutral conditions in the coming weeks.
We can only hope this will happen!
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