Concentrations of low level moisture trapped under surface inversions resulted in areas of dense fog.
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The episode as NWS GJT wrote it up.
Concentrations of low level moisture trapped under surface inversions resulted in areas of dense fog.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Grand Junction, CO wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 31, 5:29 PM MST, 1 hour 31 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND JUNCTION CO 529 PM MST SAT JAN 31 2015 .UPDATE... ISSUED AT 525 PM MST SAT JAN 31 2015 THE LAST STRONG PUSH OF PRECIPITATION HAS MOVED SOUTHWARD INTO NEW MEXICO THIS EVENING. WHILE SOME SNOWSHOWERS ARE POSSIBLE THROUGH THIS EVENING...SIGNIFICANT ACCUMULATION HAS ENDED. WITH THAT IN MIND...CANCELLED ALL THE HIGHLIGHTS. WILL ALSO DROP POPS REFLECTING TREND OF LESS PRECIP FOR THE MTNS. NEXT CONCERN WILL BE FOG FOR MANY OF THE VALLEYS ESPECIALLY DOWN SOUTH WHERE PLENTY OF MOISTURE REMAINS IN THE ATMOSPHERE. AM ANTICIPATING SOME DENSE FOG ADVISORIES LATER TONIGHT. && .SHORT TERM...(TONIGHT THROUGH SUNDAY NIGHT) ISSUED AT 232 PM MST SAT JAN 31 2015 AN UPPER TROUGH AND VORT MAX WILL MOVE ACROSS EASTERN CO THIS EVENING AND A DEEPER CLOSED LOW WILL BECOME ESTABLISHED OVER SOUTHERN AZ AND NW MEXICO. AS PREDICTED A DEFORMATION ZONE DEVELOPED BETWEEN THESE TWO SYSTEMS...WITH THE FLOW STRETCHED BETWEEN THE NORTHWEST TO WEST WINDS OVER WY AND THE UPPER PLAINS AND THE RETURN FLOW AROUND THE CLOSED LOW TO THE SOUTHWEST. THIS ZONE WILL KEEP PRECIP GOING OVER THE CO SW MTNS THIS EVENING AND HAVE LEFT THE SNOW ADVISORY GOING THROUGH 03Z. SUNDAY AND SUNDAY NIGHT THE SOUTHWEST LOW WILL CONTINUE MOVING DUE SOUTH OVER THE BAJA PENINSULA AND THE EASTERN TROUGH WILL STRENGTHEN OVER THE CENTRAL PLAINS. THIS WILL BRING DRIER NW FLOW ALOFT OVER THE AREA. EMBEDDED WEAK TROUGHS IN THESE NORTHWESTERLIES WILL INCREASE CLOUDS AND SHOWERS OVER THE NORTHERN MOUNTAINS LATER SUNDAY NIGHT. .LONG TERM...(MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY) ISSUED AT 232 PM MST SAT JAN 31 2015 FOR THE FIRST WEEK OF FEBRUARY THE FAMILIAR JANUARY PATTERN CONTINUES...WITH A RIDGE ALONG THE WEST COAST. THIS WILL GENERALLY BRING MILD AND DRY CONDITIONS TO THE FORECAST AREA. THE EXCEPTION IS FOR THE NORTHERN COLORADO MTNS THROUGH WEDNESDAY. AN ENERGIZED ALEUTIAN LOW WILL THROW DISTURBANCES OVER THE TOP OF THE WEST COAST RIDGE THAT WILL THEN BRUSH THE NE FORECAST AREA WITH SNOW AND BLOWING SNOW. THESE PASSING SYSTEMS WILL BE QUITE MILD WITH SNOW LEVEL SOMEWHERE AROUND 7000FT. FOR THE PARK/GORE/ FLATTOPS... MONDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY SNOW TOTALS MAY BE UP TO 4 INCHES BELOW 9000FT...UP TO 12 INCHES ABOVE THAT. THESE AMOUNTS COULD BE SOMEWHAT HIGHER IF THE STRONGER GFS VERIFIES. THE WESTERN RIDGE PROGRESSES INLAND THURSDAY THROUGH SUNDAY FOR EVEN MILDER AND DRIER CONDITIONS INTO NEXT WEEKEND. THERE ARE HINTS THAT THE RIDGE WILL BREAK EARLY IN THE SECOND WEEK OF FEBRUARY. && .AVIATION...(FOR THE 00Z TAFS THROUGH 00Z SUNDAY AFTERNOON) ISSUED AT 232 PM MST SAT JAN 31 2015 A BROAD LINE OF DISSIPATING SHOWERS WILL STRETCH ACROSS THE AREA FROM SW TO NE AND MOVE STEADILY ACROSS THE AREA TOWARD THE SOUTHEAST. MOUNTAINS IN COLORADO AND SE UTAH WILL REMAIN OBSCURED UNTIL ABOUT 03Z THEN GRADUALLY CLEAR. VALLEYS FOG WILL FORM AGAIN OVERNIGHT...ESPECIALLY NEAR RIVERS...AND PERSIST UNTIL ABOUT 18Z SUNDAY. MVFR CONDITIONS WILL BE WIDESPREAD SOUTH OF A LINE FROM KCCU TO KMTJ TO KBDG THROUGH ABOUT 03Z...AFFECTING KASE...KMTJ... KTEX AND KDRO. TOWARD MIDNIGHT AND OVERNIGHT CLOUDS WILL CLEAR...BUT VALLEY FOG WILL BRING AREAS OF MVFR CIGS AND VSBYS AFFECTING ALL THE TAF SITE THROUGH 18Z SUNDAY. && .GJT WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... CO...NONE. UT...NONE. && UPDATE...TGR SHORT TERM...CC LONG TERM...JOE AVIATION...CC
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND JUNCTION CO 910 AM MST SAT JAN 31 2015 COZ001>014-017>023-UTZ022>025-027>029-011615- LOWER YAMPA RIVER BASIN-CENTRAL YAMPA RIVER BASIN- ROAN AND TAVAPUTS PLATEAUS-ELKHEAD AND PARK MOUNTAINS- UPPER YAMPA RIVER BASIN-GRAND VALLEY-DEBEQUE TO SILT CORRIDOR- CENTRAL COLORADO RIVER BASIN-GRAND AND BATTLEMENT MESAS- GORE AND ELK MOUNTAINS/CENTRAL MOUNTAIN VALLEYS- CENTRAL GUNNISON AND UNCOMPAHGRE RIVER BASIN- WEST ELK AND SAWATCH MOUNTAINS-FLATTOPS- UPPER GUNNISON RIVER VALLEY-UNCOMPAHGRE PLATEAU AND DALLAS DIVIDE- NORTHWEST SAN JUAN MOUNTAINS-SOUTHWEST SAN JUAN MOUNTAINS- PARADOX VALLEY/LOWER DOLORES RIVER- FOUR CORNERS/UPPER DOLORES RIVER-ANIMAS RIVER BASIN- SAN JUAN RIVER BASIN-SOUTHEAST UTAH-EASTERN UINTA MOUNTAINS- EASTERN UINTA BASIN-TAVAPUTS PLATEAU-ARCHES/GRAND FLAT- LA SAL AND ABAJO MOUNTAINS-CANYONLANDS/NATURAL BRIDGES- 910 AM MST SAT JAN 31 2015 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR EASTERN UTAH AND WESTERN COLORADO. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT SNOW AND RAIN IN THE LOWER VALLEYS WILL CONTINUE TODAY...AND SNOWFALL WILL CONTINUE OVER THE SOUTHERN MOUNTAINS. PRECIPITATION WILL BEGIN TO WIND DOWN FROM THE NORTHWEST THIS AFTERNOON. BY EARLY THIS EVENING...STORM TOTAL SNOW ACCUMULATIONS ACROSS THE SOUTHWEST SAN JUAN MOUNTAINS WILL RANGE FROM 6 TO 10 INCHES WITH LOCAL ACCUMULATIONS UP TO ONE FOOT POSSIBLE. IN ADDITION TO RAIN AND SNOW...FOG WILL PERSIST THROUGH THIS MORNING VALLEYS...WITH THE VISIBILITY BETWEEN ABOUT 1 AND 3 MILES AT SOME LOCATIONS. LINGERING SNOW OVER THE SOUTHERN MOUNTAINS WILL CONTINUE TO DIMINISH TONIGHT. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY SNOW WILL AGAIN DEVELOP OVER THE NORTHERN MOUNTAINS ON MONDAY AND THEN PERSIST THROUGH TUESDAY. ON WEDNESDAY THE CHANCE OF SNOW WILL SPREAD SOUTHWARD TO INCLUDE MOST OF THE WESTERN COLORADO MOUNTAINS...STILL FAVORING THE NORTH. SNOW OR RAIN WILL ALSO BE POSSIBLE IN SOME OF THE NORTHERN AND CENTRAL VALLEYS ON WEDNESDAY. SUNDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY...NO SIGNIFICANT WEATHER. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED. CJC
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND JUNCTION CO
658 PM MST SAT JAN 31 2015
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0657 PM HEAVY SNOW 3 N KEBLER PASS 38.89N 107.10W
01/31/2015 M5.5 INCH GUNNISON CO SKI AREA
SWE 0.5 INCHES
&&
EVENT NUMBER GJT1500147
TGJTThe national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 dense fog. Local standard time, as filed.
Areas of dense fog developed in the Blanding area, with visibility down to one quarter of a mile through the overnight hours.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Utah in 2015Every state in 2015This day in weather historyWarnings in Utah, January 2015
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 607500.