Dense fog formed along the Interstate 70 corridor between Rifle and Eagle under a surface-based inversion.
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The episode as NWS GJT wrote it up.
Dense fog formed along the Interstate 70 corridor between Rifle and Eagle under a surface-based inversion.
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 May 3, 4:41 AM MST, 15 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service GRAND JUNCTION CO 541 AM MDT Wed May 3 2017 .UPDATE... Issued at 539 AM MDT Wed May 3 2017 Patchy dense fog developing across the central valleys in western Colorado. GOES fog imagery suggests either fog or low stratus stuck in many of these valleys. Have updated the forecast to include areas of dense fog along the I-70 corridor from Rifle east to Eagle with visibility down to 1/4 mile at KEGE. Fog is expected to burn off shortly after sunrise. && .SHORT TERM...(Today through Thursday) Issued at 350 AM MDT Wed May 3 2017 Warming trend remains on track as we close out this work week with high pressure building over the Great Basin and sliding east by Friday. GOES-16 picking up on lower stratus trapped in several of our higher valleys this morning with a few light snow showers lingering near the divide. All of this will be dissipating early this morning, with mostly sunny conditions expected across the majority of the forecast area today. Clear/Sunny weather then expected tonight and Thursday as the ridge strengthens to our west. temperatures will continue to climb through the end of the week, peaking Friday and Saturday. Gusty afternoon winds likely, especially for our higher valleys and exposed ridges as we mix deeper and deeper aloft to drive the higher speeds down. .LONG TERM...(Thursday night through Tuesday) Issued at 350 AM MDT Wed May 3 2017 As mentioned above, the upper level ridge will be sliding overhead Thursday and Friday, shifting east of the forecast area by Saturday. Expect warm and dry conditions to persist through early Saturday under the ridge with southerly return flow kicking back in by Saturday afternoon. This will help to draw some moisture back northward and introduce a tad bit of cooling aloft. This will help steepen lapse rates, leading to a few showers focused mainly on the higher terrain Saturday afternoon and evening. Similar conditions expected on Sunday as we watch the evolution of this next low pressure system that is forecast to slide southward toward the northern Baja California region. The low gets cutoff and basically meanders down across the southwest U.S. Sunday and Monday. Medium and long range models agree that this low will exist, but there are plenty of timing and placement issues to deal with, along with exactly how much moisture this this will tap and swing over our area. Will keep the low confidence forecast rolling for now with chance pops introduced to the extended forecast for the Monday through Tuesday period. Depending on how this system kicks out, there's definite potential for significant precipitation across the region by midweek. Stay tuned as this will be an interesting 7 to 10 day period across the Central Rockies. Temperatures will be running above normal through this weekend, with some cooling expected by early next week as the low pushes inland and sweeps more cloud cover over the area. && .AVIATION...(For the 12Z TAFS through 12Z Thursday morning) Issued at 350 AM MDT Wed May 3 2017 Dry, northwest flow aloft will move into the area this morning bringing widespread VFR conditions over the next few days. However, patchy ILS CIGS will linger over the higher valleys in western Colorado through 15Z this morning before eroding to scattered sky cover. Expect gusty northwest winds between 19Z and 02Z with speeds up to 35kts near ridges. && .GJT WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... CO...Dense Fog Advisory until 9 AM MDT this morning for COZ007-008. UT...None. && UPDATE...JDC SHORT TERM...JDC LONG TERM...007 AVIATION...JDC
Hazardous Weather Outlook National Weather Service GRAND JUNCTION CO 523 AM MDT Wed May 3 2017 COZ001>014-017>023-UTZ022>025-027>029-041200- 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-Flat Tops- 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- 523 AM MDT Wed May 3 2017 This hazardous weather outlook is for eastern Utah and western Colorado. .DAY ONE...Today and Tonight No hazardous weather is expected at this time. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Thursday through Tuesday Thursday and Friday: Dry and warm. Saturday through Tuesday: Breezy and slightly cooler with scattered afternoon and evening showers expected, mainly over the mountains. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Spotter activation will not be needed.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
2 dense fog. Local standard time, as filed.
Dense fog occurred at the Eagle County Regional Airport for several hours where the visibility dropped to less than a quarter mile.
Dense fog was detected by Colorado Department of Transportation weather sensors along Interstate 70 with the visibility near zero.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Colorado in 2017Every state in 2017This day in weather historyWarnings in Colorado, May 2017
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: 691243, 691241.