Denver Weather and Climate

The geographical location of Denver at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains subjects this city to various types of climates sometimes even rapid and volatile ones. As per the Koppen classification, Denver enjoys a semi-arid and continental climate. There are four distinguishable seasons in Denver. The noticeable seasons are the hot and dry summers and the cool to cold winters. The other two seasons come in between the summer and the winter and have a mixed combination of weather of summer and winter and therefore is considered to be milder.

The summers of Denver owing to the high altitude is generally hot and dry. Denver can be called a sunny city as it receives around 300 days of summer which is more than many other cities. However, for the same reason there is afternoon conventional rainfall characterized by thunderstorms.

The winters in Denver generally begins in the first week of October and lasts all the way till the last week of April. The winter brings in a lot of varied climate right from being cool to sharp cold weather (Blizzards are a rarity with a 3-4 year gap). The high altitude of the place attributes the city to sunlight therefore melts the snow even in winter. These alternate bursts of snow and sunshine are the cause for the warm Chinook winds (on the leeward side of the Mountains). These winds are warm enough to melt snow.

One more reason of the high altitude is that the annual precipitation of Denver is considered to be low and about 401 mm (15.8 inches) in the form of rainfall and snow storms. The temperature of the city is quite contrasting. The average temperature ranges from below 0 degrees Fahrenheit (-18 degrees Celsius) to 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 degrees Celsius). Denver has seen and extreme low of -29 degrees Fahrenheit (-34 degrees Celsius) and a high of 105 degrees Fahrenheit (41 degrees Celsius).