Weather Alerts for Colorado

Recent Locations: Sharpsville, IN Roby, TX Lamar, CO

Current Alerts for Lamar, CO: Fire Weather Watch

1. Fire Weather Watch for: Central and Southeast Park County; Jefferson and West Douglas Counties Above 6000 Feet/Gilpin/Clear Creek/Northeast Park Counties Below 9000 Feet; Elbert/Central and East Douglas Counties Above 6000 Feet; Central and East Adams and Arapahoe Counties; North and Northeast Elbert County Below 6000 Feet/North Lincoln County; Southeast Elbert County Below 6000 Feet/South Lincoln County; Washington County

2. Fire Weather Watch for: Kit Carson County; Cheyenne; Norton; Graham; Hitchcock; Red Willow

3. Fire Weather Watch for: Upper Arkansas River Valley Including Lake County and Chaffee County; Teller County/Rampart Range Including Pikes Peak and Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument; Fremont County Including Canon City/Howard/Texas Creek; San Luis Valley Including Alamosa/Del Norte/Fort Garland/Saguache; Southern Front Range Including Sangre De Cristo Mountains/Wet Mountains/La Veta Pass; Northern El Paso County Including Monument and Black Forest; Southern El Paso County Including Fort Carson and Colorado Springs; Pueblo County Including Pueblo; Huerfano County Including Walsenburg; Western Las Animas County Including Trinidad and Thatcher; Crowley County Including Ordway; Otero County Including La Junta and Western Comanche Grasslands; Eastern Las Animas County Including Pinon Canyon; Kiowa County Including Eads; Bent County Including Las Animas; Prowers County Including Lamar; Baca County Including Springfield and Eastern Comanche Grasslands

4. Freeze Warning for: Central Colorado River Basin; Four Corners/Upper Dolores River; Animas River Basin; San Juan River Basin

5. Freeze Watch for: Central Colorado River Basin; Four Corners/Upper Dolores River; Animas River Basin; San Juan River Basin

6. Freeze Watch for: Grand Valley; Debeque to Silt Corridor; Central Gunnison and Uncompahgre River Basin; Paradox Valley/Lower Dolores River; Southeast Utah; Arches/Grand Flat; Canyonlands/Natural Bridges

7. Freeze Watch for: Lower Yampa River Basin; Central Yampa River Basin; Eastern Uinta Basin

8. Freeze Watch for: Lower Yampa River Basin; Central Yampa River Basin; Eastern Uinta Basin

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Current U.S. National Radar--Current

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National Weather Forecast--Current

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National Weather Forecast for Tomorrow

Tomorrow National Weather Forecast and Tomorrow National Weather Map are show below.

North America Water Vapor (Moisture)

This map shows recent moisture content over North America. Bright and colored areas show high moisture (ie, clouds); brown indicates very little moisture present; black indicates no moisture.

Weather Topic: What is Rain?

Home - Education - Precipitation - Rain

Rain Next Topic: Shelf Clouds

Precipitation in the form of water droplets is called rain. Rain generally has a tendency to fall with less intensity over a greater period of time, and when rainfall is more severe it is usually less sustained.

Rain is the most common form of precipitation and happens with greater frequency depending on the season and regional influences. Cities have been shown to have an observable effect on rainfall, due to an effect called the urban heat island. Compared to upwind, monthly rainfall between twenty and forty miles downwind of cities is 30% greater.

Next Topic: Shelf Clouds

Weather Topic: What is Sleet?

Home - Education - Precipitation - Sleet

Sleet Next Topic: Snow

Sleet is a form of precipitation in which small ice pellets are the primary components. These ice pellets are smaller and more translucent than hailstones, and harder than graupel. Sleet is caused by specific atmospheric conditions and therefore typically doesn't last for extended periods of time.

The condition which leads to sleet formation requires a warmer body of air to be wedged in between two sub-freezing bodies of air. When snow falls through a warmer layer of air it melts, and as it falls through the next sub-freezing body of air it freezes again, forming ice pellets known as sleet. In some cases, water droplets don't have time to freeze before reaching the surface and the result is freezing rain.

Next Topic: Snow