DENVER WEATHER SUMMARY FOR 2001
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DENVER COLORADO
200 PM MST WED JAN 02 2002

           ...DENVER'S WEATHER SUMMARY FOR 2001...

2001 FINALIZED AS SLIGHTLY ABOVE NORMAL IN THE TEMPERATURE CATEGORY AND JUST
BARELY AB0VE NORMAL AS FAR AS PRECIPITATION IS CONCERNED.  TEMPERATURES RANGED
FROM 101 DEGREES ON JULY 1ST DOWN TO -15 ON FEB 9TH.  THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE
FOR 2001 WAS 51.3 DEGREES WHICH WAS ONLY 2.4 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL...NOT NEAR
ENOUGH TO GET INTO THE TOP 10 WARMEST YEARS.  ONLY 7 NEW TEMPERATURE RECORDS
WERE EITHER SET OR TIED.  ONE UNUSUAL STATISTIC WAS THAT THERE WERE NO
NEW DAILY MAXIMUM RECORDS SET OR TIED.  JULY 2001 FINISHED AS THE 6TH WARMEST
JULY WHILE SEPTEMBER 2001 CLOSED AS THE 9TH WARMEST DENVER SEPTEMBER.  THERE
WERE 46 90 DEGREE DAYS DURING THE YEAR WHICH WAS 13 ABOVE NORMAL.  THIS COMPARES
TO 61 90 DEGREE DAYS RECORDED DURING 2000 WHICH ESTABLISHED A NEW RECORD FOR
90 DEGREE DAYS.  IN 1999...ONLY 16 90 DEGREES WERE RECORDED.  THE NORMAL FOR 90
DEGREE DAYS FOR DENVER IS 33. THE WARMEST YEAR IN DENVER HISTORY WAS IN 1934 WITH
AN AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF 54.8 DEGREES WHILE THE COLDEST YEAR WAS 1912 WITH A
MEAN TEMPERATURE OF 47.6DEGREES.

FOR PRECIPITATION...THE YEAR FINISHED ABOVE NORMAL WITH A TOTAL OF 16.55 INCHES
COLLECTED IN THE RAIN BUCKET.  THIS WAS 0.44 INCH ABOVE NORMAL.  JULY 2001 WENT
INTO THE RECORD BOOKS AS THE 5TH WETTEST DENVER JULY...WHILE OCTOBER WAS THE 5TH
DRIEST AND DECEMBER BECAME THE 9TH DRIEST.  THE WETTEST DENVER YEAR WAS 1967 
WITH 23.31 INCHES AND THE DRIEST YEAR WAS 1954 WITH 7.51 INCHES. 


SNOWFALL FOR THE CALENDER YEAR WAS ON THE DISMAL SIDE WITH ONLY 53.0 INCHES
RECORDED.  THIS IS 7.3 INCHES BELOW NORMAL.  WORSE YET...FOR THE SEASON SO FAR
...JULY 2001-DECEMBER 2001...ONLY 8.4 INCHES HAVE BEEN RECORDED WHICH IS 13.3
INCHES BELOW THE NORMAL OF 21.7 INCHES.  BLIZZARD LIKE CONDITIONS MOVED THROUGH
THE DENVER METRO AREA BETWEEN APRIL 10-11 DUMPING 10 INCHES OF SNOW ON THE FORMER
STAPLETON INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT.  ADJACENT TO DENVER...THIS SAME STORM PILED UP
18 INCHES OF SNOW IN AURORA AND WITH THE STRONG WINDS...DRIFTS UP TO 5 FEET WERE
MEASURED.

ON JUNE 2OTH...SEVERE WEATHER POUNDED THE DENVER INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT.  UP TO
2 INCH HAIL WAS OBSERVED CREATING EXTENSIVE DAMAGE ON AND NEAR THE AIRPORT.
LUCKILY THERE WERE NO REPORTS OF TORNADOES WITH THIS SEVERE WEATHER EVENT.
THERE WERE 7 OTHER OCCURENCES OF HAIL AT THE DENVER INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT...
BUT NO SEVERE HAIL REPORTED (HAIL SIZE GREATER THAN OR EQUAL TO 3/4 INCH)
AN UNUSUAL STATISTICE WAS THAT THERE WERE 35 DAYS WITH HEAVY/DENSE FOG WHERE
THE VISIBILITY IS 1/4 MILE OR LESS.  THIS WAS 25 DAYS ABOVE NORMAL.  62
THUNDERSTORMS WERE OBSERVED WHICH WAS 20 ABOVE NORMAL.  THE PEAK WIND GUST
DURING THE YEAR WAS 61 MPH RECORDED ON AUGUST 20TH.

*********************************************************************

            ...DENVER WEATHER STATISTICS FOR 2001...
               
   ----------TEMPERATURE---------      PCPN   SNOW HEATING COOLING
    AVG  AVG   MONTH  MONTH  EXTREMES         FALL  DEGREE  DEGREE
    MAX  MIN    AVG   NORM   HIGH LOW                DAYS    DAYS

JAN 41.9 18.1   30.0  28.2    67    4   0.78   8.7    1079     0  JAN
FEB 39.4 17.2   28.3  32.3    57  -15   0.64  10.6    1021     0  FEB
MAR 51.2 28.3   39.8  38.0    67   16   1.19   6.7     775     0  MAR
APR 62.9 36.2   49.6  46.8    79   23   1.28  11.7     455     0  APR
MAY 69.7 44.4   57.1  55.9    85   31   3.74   7.2     256    18  MAY
JUN 84.2 54.5   69.4  67.0    98   41   1.53   0.0      46   184  JUN
JUL 90.7 62.7   76.7  72.1   101   57   4.75   0.0       0   373  JUL
AUG 87.2 59.4   73.3  69.8    95   50   0.71   0.0       4   269  AUG
SEP 81.5 52.0   66.8  61.0    92   39   0.99   0.0      65   125  SEP
OCT 66.0 36.9   51.5  50.2    84   21   0.08   1.0     416     5  OCT
NOV 54.0 27.7   40.9  37.6    72   -2   0.72   4.2     717     0  NOV
DEC 43.5 19.9   31.7  29.6    57    9   0.14   2.9    1026     0  DEC
    
ANN 64.4 38.1   51.3  48.9   101  -15  16.55  53.0    5860   974  ANN

***NOTE: OFFICIALLY BOTH SNOWFALL AND HEATING DEGREE DAYS ARE TOTALED ON
A SEASONAL BASIS (JUL 1 TO JUN 30)...NOT ON A YEARLY BASIS (JAN 1 TO DEC
31)*** 

AVERAGE HIGH FOR THE YEAR  64.4    NORMAL  63.9   DEPARTURE PLUS   0.5
AVERAGE LOW FOR THE YEAR   38.1    NORMAL  33.9   DEPARTURE PLUS   4.2
AVERAGE 2001 TEMPERATURE   51.3    NORMAL  48.9   DEPARTURE PLUS   2.4

HIGHEST TEMPERATURE    101 ON  JUL  1ST            
LOWEST TEMPERATURE     -15 ON  FEB  9TH        

DAYS WITH MAX 90 OR ABOVE  46     NORMAL  33      DEPARTURE PLUS  13 
DAYS WITH MAX 32 OR BELOW  20     NORMAL  22      DEPARTURE MINUS  2 
DAYS WITH MIN 32 OR BELOW 159     NORMAL 156      DEPARTURE PLUS   3
DAYS WITH MIN  0 OR BELOW   4     NORMAL   9      DEPARTURE MINUS  5

TEMPERATURE RECORDS....                                

 NUMBER OF DAILY MAXIMUMS TIED OR ESTABLISHED......... 0            
 NUMBER OF DAILY MINIMUMS TIED OR ESTABLISHED......... 2             
 NUMBER OF DAILY LOW MAXIMUMS TIED OR ESTABLISHED..... 0     
 NUMBER OF DAILY HIGH MINIMUMS TIED OR ESTABLISHED.... 5   

COOLING DEGREE DAYS....

 YEARLY TOTAL....  974    NORMAL.... 534    DEPARTURE PLUS 440   
  
HEATING DEGREE DAYS....  **SEE NOTE ABOVE FOR DATES**

JUL 1998 - JUN 1999  TOTAL  5710    NORMAL 6363  DEPARTURE MINUS  653  
JUL 1999 - JUN 2000  TOTAL  5282    NORMAL 6363  DEPARTURE MINUS 1081  
JUL 2000 - JUN 2001  TOTAL  6438    NORMAL 6363  DEPARTURE PLUS    75

JAN 2001 - JUN 2001  TOTAL  3632    NORMAL 3812  DEPARTURE MINUS  180
JUL 2001 - DEC 2001  TOTAL  2228    NORMAL 2551  DEPARTURE MINUS  323
JAN 2001 - DEC 2001  TOTAL  5860    NORMAL 6363  DEPARTURE MINUS  503

LAST FREEZE OF THE SPRING..05/21/01   05/13/00   05/17/99          
FIRST FREEZE OF THE FALL...10/05/01   09/22/00   09/28/99                     
LAST SNOW OF THE SPRING....05/21/01   05/18/00   05/11/99                     
FIRST SNOW OF THE FALL.....10/05/01   09/24/00   09/28/99            

FIRST 90 DEGREE DAY........06/10/01   05/29/00   06/25/99         
LAST 90 DEGREE DAY.........09/04/01   09/17/00   08/27/99          
                    
PRECIPITATION (IN INCHES)....
                                      
YEARLY TOTAL..........    16.55  NORMAL 16.11   DEPARTURE PLUS  0.44
DAYS WITH .01 OR GREATER  86     NORMAL 89      DEPARTURE MINUS 3 
GREATEST IN 24 HOURS...   1.44  ON JUL 23RD                          
  
SNOWFALL (IN INCHES)....  **SEE NOTE ABOVE FOR DATES**

**NOTE: SNOWFALL IS MEASURED AT THE COOPERATIVE WEATHER SITE AT THE 
FORMER STAPLETON INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT.


 JAN - DEC 2000             37.3   NORMAL 60.3    DEPARTURE MINUS 23.0 
 GREATEST IN 24 HOURS        5.5  NOV  6TH        
 GREATEST DEPTH              3    NOV 12TH    

 JUL - DEC 2000             13.4   NORMAL 21.7    DEPARTURE MINUS  8.3  
 GREATEST IN 24 HOURS        5.5  NOV  6TH   
 GREATEST DEPTH              3    NOV 12TH      

 JAN - DEC 2001             53.0   NORMAL 60.3    DEPARTURE MINUS  7.3 
 GREATEST IN 24 HOURS        9.5  APR 10-11TH     
 GREATEST DEPTH              9    NOV 11TH    

 JUL - DEC 2001              8.4   NORMAL 21.7    DEPARTURE MINUS  13.3  
 GREATEST IN 24 HOURS        2.2  NOV  7-8TH 
 GREATEST DEPTH              2    DEC 16TH      
                             2    DEC  8TH

WINDS (IN MILES PER HOUR)....

 AVERAGE SPEED            9.9  NORMAL  8.6     DEPARTURE PLUS  1.3
 PEAK GUST               61  AUG 20TH                           
 PEAK GUST DIRECTION     (290 - WEST NORTHWEST)

SEA LEVEL PRESSURE (IN INCHES OF MERCURY).... 

 HIGHEST                     30.66 ON NOV  8TH
 LOWEST                      29.22 ON APR  6TH

MISCELLANEOUS WEATHER....               

DAYS WITH THUNDERSTORMS        62  NORMAL  42     DEPARTURE PLUS  20
DAYS WITH HEAVY FOG            35  NORMAL  10     DEPARTURE PLUS  25
PERCENT OF POSSIBLE SUNSHINE   72  NORMAL  69     DEPARTURE PLUS   3
DAYS WITH HAIL                  8  NORMAL  N/A
DAYS WITH TORNADO/FUNNEL CLOUD  0  NORMAL  N/A