Colorado Springs weather: Haze early Friday leads to rain showers in the afternoon
Colorado is about to experience a moisture-laden phenomenon over the next one or two weeks.
The North American Monsoon — a wind pattern change driven by low pressure near southern California, and high pressure in the central US — is returning. The result is a southerly airflow across the Colorado, pulling in sub-tropical moisture.
For the state, including Colorado Springs and the Pikes Peak region, that means a very predictable daily pattern.
“We start with clear skies, then temperatures warm up fast,” KOAA Meteorologist Casey Dorn said. “Clouds increase during the lunch hour as storms begin to build in the mountains. Eventually those storms move off the mountains, into I-25, and we see hit-or-miss storms.”
Friday’s highs will be in the upper 80s with some haze mixed in ahead of potential showers in the afternoon.
“Looking into the weekend, a rinse-and-repeat pattern is the picture with the North American Monsoon the main pattern throughout the weekend,” Dorn said. “Expect to see scattered mountain thunderstorms both Saturday and Sunday, with isolated storms along I-25.”
Highs will remain in the upper 80s with sunny mornings and cloudier afternoons. Storm coverage will be relatively higher Saturday due to weak passing upper level energy.
“We’ll be mainly dry Monday with only a spotty storm chance on Tuesday, both days reaching the 90s,” Dorn said. “Increasing moisture Wednesday brings storm chances back, ahead of our next cold front.”
Here’s the four-day forecast for Colorado Springs from the National Weather Service:
Saturday: A 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms after noon. Mostly sunny, with a high near 89. North northwest wind around 5 mph becoming south southeast in the afternoon. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
Sunday: A 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms after noon. Mostly sunny, with a high near 89. West northwest wind around 5 mph becoming east southeast in the morning. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
Monday: A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms after noon. Mostly sunny, with a high near 90. West northwest wind around 5 mph becoming south southeast in the afternoon.
Tuesday: A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms after noon. Sunny, with a high near 89. West northwest wind around 5 mph becoming southeast in the afternoon.