Say it ain’t snow! Cold weather to invade Mountain West

Western cities could break record highs and record lows in same week

Snow is possible in the Rockies and foothills as unseasonably cold air plunges into the region early next week.

ORLANDO, Fla. – Talk about weather whiplash.

Big changes are coming to the nation’s midsection behind an unseasonably strong cold front early next week.

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Possibly record-breaking cold air sinks into the Nation's midsection next week.

Cities near the Rockies could set record high temperatures close to 100 degrees over Labor Day weekend just to crash into record territory on the cold side by Tuesday morning.

Temperatures that start out in the 20s Tuesday morning may not make it out of the 30s for highs Tuesday afternoon.

Denver high temperature forecast. Temperatures flirt with 100 degrees before plummeting into the 30s Tuesday,

In addition to the massive temperature drop coming to the West, snow is possible along the front range of the Rockies. If measurable snow falls in Denver next week, it could be the third earliest occurrence of measurable snow on record. The earliest occurrence is Sept. 3.

Pattern influenced by Pacific typhoons

Two typhoons, hurricanes in the the Western Pacific, have been churning in in that basin since late August.

Typhoon Maysak made landfall in South Korea Sept. 3. Typhoon Haishen is expected to make landfall close to where Maysak came ashore Sunday into Monday.

Maysak is in the process of being picked up by the jet stream, the river of strong winds that circles the globe up where jet aircraft fly, and Haishen will follow in the coming days.

Pacific typhoons impacting the large scale pattern

The two tropical systems will help to amplify the jet stream creating larger-than-normal troughs and ridges across the globe. A wavy jet stream is more common in the fall and especially winter, which helps to create huge winter storms in the Plains or East Coast.

The jet stream ridge will be enhanced over the West Coast, helping to expand the ongoing heat and drought. Downstream over the over Rockies, the jet stream will buckle, allowing for cold air that has been bottled up in Canada for most of the summer to flood parts of the country.

The ripple effect of those two storms could also impact steering currents in the tropical Atlantic, if storms were to develop.


About the Author:

Jonathan Kegges joined the News 6 team in June 2019 and now covers weather on TV and all digital platforms.

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