Spring Storm to Dump Over a Foot of Snow in Parts of the Rockies (FORECAST)

April 15,2015


 
The calendar may say mid-April, but a slow-moving system is wringing out snow in the Rocky Mountains this week.

Winter Alerts

The culprit is a sharp southward plunge of the jet stream which drove into the Northwest Monday, then the northern Rockies and Great Basin Tuesday, bringing lowering snow levels to the Cascades, Bitterroots and Wasatch, not to mention high winds to the Great Basin.
(MORE: Dust Storm Slams Utah, Nevada)
Snow blanketed the Cascades through Tuesday and has now spread into the northern Rockies and Wasatch, persisting in parts of the Wasatch through Wednesday.
(INTERACTIVE MAPS: Winter Alerts | Where the Snow Is Now)
Salt Lake City went from a dust storm accompanying the cold front with winds gusting over 55 mph in many locations to picking up 5 inches of snow, as of early Wednesday afternoon. This was the heaviest snow event this season at the Salt Lake City International Airport, though roads were mainly wet.

Snow was also falling in Billings, Montana early Wednesday at the rate of one inch per hour. This was their first measurable snow in three weeks. Locations near Red Lodge, Montana picked up 6-10 inches of snow already through Wednesday morning.
(FORECAST: Salt Lake City)

Forecast Snowfall Totals

Snowfall Forecast

With the jet stream dip, or trough, carving southward and closing off over the Four Corners Region providing mid-level moisture and instability, plus moist winds blowing upslope from the Plains toward the Front Range, the stage is set for locally heavy snow in the mountains and foothills of Colorado, Wyoming and far northern New Mexico.
In fact, this snow may persist for several days due to the sluggish movement of what will become a closed upper-level low near the Four Corners.
(MAPS: 10-Day Forecast)
Parts of the foothills and mountains west of Denver, west of Colorado Springs and the high country of western, central and southern Wyoming will likely pick up over a foot of snow through the end of this week. Some totals up to 2 feet or even more aren't out of the question.
Some heavier totals are also possible in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains of southern Colorado and northern New Mexico.
There will likely be a huge gradient in snowfall due to marginal surface temperatures and rather warm ground in the Denver metro area. The highest totals will be in the western, southwestern and southern foothills with the least snowfall toward the northeast metro.
Snow may mix in with rain, at times, in the Mile High City. For now, we expect snow levels to remain above the lowest elevations of the Denver metro area through the majority of this event.
With that said, travel may become difficult headed west out of Denver into the foothills and high country on Interstate 70 Thursday into Friday. Snowy travel can also be expected over the Palmer Divide between Denver and Colorado Springs on Interstate 25.
(INTERACTIVE MAP: Your Commute Forecast)
While it may seem rather late for a snowstorm, keep in mind that snow can fall well into the spring in these areas.
Winter Storm Zephyr brought snow to Montana, Wyoming, Utah, Colorado and New Mexico during the second week of May.
According to Alaska meteorologist Brian Brettschneider, April is the snowiest month, on average, in several locations in the Rockies and High Plains.

MORE: Winter Storms of the 2013-2014 Season from A to Z