391
FXUS65 KBOU 061914
AFDBOU

Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Denver/Boulder CO
1214 PM MST Fri Mar 6 2026

.KEY MESSAGES...

- Snow to gradually diminish and become more intermittent for the
  high country and I-25 corridor through early this evening. All
  areas will be dry by midnight. Slick roads will remain possible
  through early Saturday morning as temperatures drop well below
  freezing.

- Warming trend returns Saturday, and continues through
  Monday/Tuesday. Dry weather favored for the foreseeable future,
  aside from slim (20%) chances for light mountain snow showers
  Tuesday-Wednesday,

&&

.DISCUSSION /Through Friday/...
Issued at 1209 PM MST Fri Mar 6 2026

The winter storm is on its exit glidepath already for the
mountains, foothills and urban corridor, although banded snow
continues to produce moderate to heavy snow east of I-25 as it
pushes deeper into the rural plains. Table Mountain and KFTG
profilers indicate strengthening north flow through 11,000 ft MSL
as anticipated, acting to reduce snowfall rates for areas west of
I-25. This trend is set to continue through the coming hours.

With the above in mind, potential for snow accumulation on lower-
elevation roadways, especially along/west of I-25 (excluding the
Palmer Divide), will be very limited for the remainder of the day.
The current Advisories for the Denver metro area may thus be ended
early once the current band progresses east of Denver International
Airport. Nonetheless, temperatures will more readily descend below
freezing this evening, so lingering wet and locally slushy
conditions on area roads may lead to re-freezing and some slick
conditions that could persist through early Saturday morning.
Precipitation will taper off further this evening, with all areas
dry by midnight. Lows tonight will drop to near 20F for the metro,
upper teens in the plains, and single digits to locally below zero
for our high mountain valleys.

Subsident flow returns Saturday along with clear sky conditions,
allowing for some modest warming into the upper 40`s to low 50`s
for the plains and I-25 corridor, with 30`s for mountain
communities.

The warming trend will accelerate on Sunday and continue into
Monday/Tuesday, when highs will rebound into the upper 60`s or even
scrape 70F around the Denver metro. We`ll remain under dry zonal
flow aloft through Monday, with no precipitation expected. Winds
will gradually increase as the jet stream nudges southward closer to
Colorado, especially for the high country. There`s a slim shot (~20%
chance) for some very light mountain snow showers Tuesday into
Wednesday as a shortwave skirts by to our north, and slight cooling
on Wednesday as a result, but mountain precip chances may drop to
zero soon if current trends in ensemble guidance continue. Dry
and unseasonably warm weather is set to prevail thereafter and
carry us through the end of the work week.

&&

.AVIATION /18Z TAFS through 18Z Saturday/...
Issued at 1109 AM MST Fri Mar 6 2026

Radar is indicating a band (oriented south to north) of heavy snow
to push slowly northeastward across DIA for the next 60 minutes or
so. Will keep visiblities at 1/4SM along with ceilings in the OVC003-
006 range. High resolution models keep -SN/SN going until
22Z-23Z, then a substantial decrease, finally ending by 03Z.
Ceiling will improve greatly after 03Z. The runway temperatures
are right near freezing currently, plus the snow is falling at the
daily solar maximum, so there should not be too much accumulation.
if any, on the paved surfaces. Models keep the surface winds
north-northwestrerly through mid evening, then they eventual go
to weak drainage after midnight. Any ceiling issues will be done
by about 08Z.

&&

.BOU WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
Winter Weather Advisory until midnight MST tonight for COZ030-
032-037-041.

Winter Weather Advisory until 8 PM MST this evening for COZ031-
039-040-045.

Winter Storm Warning until midnight MST tonight for COZ033>036.

&&

$$

DISCUSSION...BRQ
AVIATION...66