Estimated Snowfall
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Satellite Depiction of November 1, 2004 Snowfall. |
This visible satellite image was taken at 7:45 am MST November 2, 2004. It shows the extent of snowfall associated with the storm system moving through the area on November 1st. Snowfall in western Kansas along the Colorado border was generally under one inch. Most of the snowfall occurred across eastern Colorado, where a large area of 4 to 8 inches was reported from Limon to Denver. North winds of 40-50 mph combined with the snow to produce drifts of 3 to 5 feet. Numerous accidents forced the closure of Interstate 70 between Goodland and Denver.
This image also shows how dramatically local terrain features can impact snowfall. The red dotted lines depict ridges of higher terrain jutting eastward from the Rocky Mountains. From north to south they are: Cheyenne Ridge, Palmer Ridge (near I-70) and the Raton Ridge. Persistent north winds during the event resulted in snowfall being deeper and more widespread on the north facing slope of the Palmer Ridge. This occurs because the terrain forces the air to ascend in this region, which cools the air aiding in snow production. Further south, the satellite image shows bare ground or very minimal snow cover. This resulted from air descending down the south facing slope of the Palmer Divide. A similar effect is also seen in southern Colorado where the terrain rises to the Raton Ridge along the CO/NM border. Even the river valleys of the Platte River can be seen in the snow field over NE Colorado and western Nebraska, as well as the South Fork of the Republican River in southwest Cheyenne County Kansas.
The colorized topographical map shows the terrain across Colorado, Kansas and Nebraska. The pink-purple areas in central Kansas (right side of map) represent land elevations near 1500 feet MSL. The yellow-brown colors (5000-6000 ft MSL) across eastern Colorado represent higher elevations associated with the various ridges of land land extending east from the Rocky Mountains (red-white). River valleys show up as small "tentacles" of dark blue protruding westward into Colorado.
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