Buckle up: Hot and dry summer expected

(SOUTHERN COLORADO) — With May wrapping up this week, it is time to look forward to June and the official start of Summer (at least according to meteorologists). Meteorological Summer includes the months of June, July, and August.

Meteorological summer starts Saturday, June 1 while the official calendar start day of summer is Thursday, June 20 this year.

The Climate Prediction Center (CPC) looks at various patterns for longer-term forecasts. They consider many different variables with their forecasts but issue two main types of outlooks: moisture and temperature.

Above, the CPC issued their forecast for the time frame of June 7 through June 13, taking us into the middle of the month. They are calling for an abundance of moisture in Southern Colorado with a bit of a toss-up on temperatures. Keep in mind, these graphics are not necessarily predictions – but rather outlooks. This does not mean it will rain every single day, Southern Colorado is just likely to see above-average moisture.

Seasonal temperatures will also continue to rise as we transition from Meteorological Spring to Meteorological Summer. During June, July, and August, the region can generally expect temperatures in the 70s and 80s. This is much different than Spring temperatures which average from the upper 40s into the upper 70s – a much wider range.

The CPC also issues seasonal outlooks like this one, looking at the next three months. Currently, they are calling for moisture to be quite a bit below average; a rather dry pattern appears to be setting up. They are also calling for temperatures to be above average. Both of these outlooks seem pretty reasonable, especially since we are transitioning from a strong El Niño pattern to La Niña. Typically when this happens, Southern Colorado sees fewer storm systems move through and a dominating ridge of high pressure develop for much of the summer.

As of right now, summer is looking to be rather hot and dry but outlooks can always change. Be on the lookout for any future updates from the FOX21 Storm Team.

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