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Arctic air plunges into Southern Colorado tonight and Thursday

Cheyenne Mountain sunset
Posted at 6:31 PM, Jan 05, 2022
and last updated 2022-01-05 20:31:20-05

Tonight's Forecast:
An Arctic front will bring frigid temperatures to Southern Colorado and heavy snowfall to the central mountains tonight. Snow is also expected to fall across the Denver metro this evening, with rapidly diminishing chances for snowfall south of the Castle Rock area. Still some light snow will push into the Palmer Divide and Teller County tonight, with only light accumulations in these areas. A little bit of light snow could also fall over parts of Colorado Springs, but totals here are likely to stay well under an inch.

Snow in Southern Colorado will be secondary to the COLD and dangerous wind chills. A Wind Chill Advisory has been issued for the eastern Plains, and will go into effect at midnight. Dangerous wind chills to -20 degrees will be possible, which could lead to frostbite for exposed areas of skin in as little as 30 minutes.

COLORADO SPRINGS: Low: 4; High: 27. Upslope flow will push very cold air up against the foothills tomorrow, with highs in the Pikes Peak Region struggling to get out of the 20s. Thursday will be a day where it may actually be warmer for higher elevation areas than for the lower elevations.

PUEBLO: Low: 5; High: 25. Mostly cloudy and cold in the morning, with the wind chill temperature as low as -12 degrees. Afternoon highs will only warm into the middle 20s, even as sunshine returns to the forecast.

CANON CITY: Low: 14; High: 39. While it won't be as cold as the Plains, areas of Fremont County will see a much colder day Thursday than what we saw this afternoon.

WOODLAND PARK: Low: 14; High: 42. While a cold layer air will keep the Plains frigid on Thursday, westerly breezes over Teller County will keep us around 10-15 degrees warmer than the lower elevations. Afternoon wind gusts to 40 mph will also be possible.

TRI-LAKES: Low: -0s/0s; High: 20s/30s. Cold, dense air will hover around the Palmer Divide most of the day, with some warming possible Thursday evening as the frigid airmasss begins to retreat to the east.

PLAINS: Low: -0s/0s; High: 10s/20s. Brutally cold air will invade the Plains of eastern Colorado late tonight and Thursday. A Wind Chill Advisory for the eastern part of the state will continue through 11 am.

WALSENBURG/TRINIDAD: Low: 0s/10s; High: 30s/40s. Although it will be cold tonight and Thursday, it looks like the southern I-25 corridor will escape the worst of the cold this time around.

MOUNTAINS: Low: 10s; High: 30s/40s. A little bit of light snow may fall across the northern Sangres through Thursday morning, otherwise, most of the snow from our current storm will impact the central and northern mountains. In these areas, snow will be heavy, with Winter Storm Warnings and Winter Weather Advisories in effect until 11 am. In the southeastern mountains, it will be blustery and cool on Thursday.

Extended Outlook:
A quick warm-up will push highs into the 50s and 60s on Friday, which will be nice after Thursday's big chill. The mild air will stick around as we start the weekend before a cold front Saturday night. The front may bring a few snow showers into Southern Colorado through Sunday morning and a colder airmass for the end of the weekend.

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