About Denver Colorado

The City and County of Denver is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Denver is a consolidated city-county located in the South Platte River Valley on the High Plains just east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains. The Denver downtown district is located immediately east of the confluence of Cherry Creek with the South Platte River, approximately 15 miles (24 km) east of the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. Denver is nicknamed the "Mile-High City" because its official elevation is exactly one mile, or 5,280 feet (1,609 m) above sea level. The 105th meridian west of Greenwich passes through Union Station, making it the reference point for the Mountain Time Zone.

The United States Census Bureau estimated that the population of Denver was 598,707 in 2008, making it the 24th most populous U.S. city. The 10-county Denver-Aurora-Broomfield, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area had an estimated 2008 population of 2,506,626 and ranked as the 21st most populous U.S. metropolitan statistical area and the 12-county Denver-Aurora-Boulder Combined Statistical Area had an estimated 2008 population of 3,049,562 and ranked as the 16th most populous U.S. metropolitan area. It is also the second-largest city in the Mountain West after Phoenix. Denver is the largest city in the Front Range Urban Corridor, an urban region stretching across eighteen counties in two states. The population of the Front Range Urban Corridor is estimated at 4,251,663. The city has the tenth-largest central business district in the United States by population.

Climate

Denver has a Semi-arid climate (Köppen climate classification BSk) with four distinct seasons. While Denver is located on the Great Plains, the weather of the city and surrounding area is heavily influenced by the proximity of the Rocky Mountains to the west. The climate is considered a high-desert climate. While generally mild compared to the mountains to the west and the plains further east, it can be very unpredictable. Before the city's settlement, the Denver landscape was made up of primarily prairie and desert lands. Because Denver and most of its suburbs sit in a "bowl", the city is often protected from harsh cold and strong winds. Measurable amounts of snow have fallen in the Denver area as late as June and as early as September.

The average temperature in Denver is 50.1 °F (10.1 °C), and the average yearly precipitation is 15.81 inches (402 mm). The season's first snowfall generally occurs around October 19, and the last snowfall is about April 27, averaging 61.4 inches (156 cm) of seasonal accumulation. The National Weather Service records an annual average of sunshine during 69 percent of all possible daylight hours.

Denver's winters can vary from mild to cold, and although large amounts of snow can fall on the mountains just west of the city, the effects of orographic lift dry out the air passing over the Front Range, shielding the city from precipitation for much of the season. Additionally, warm chinook winds occasionally occur as air passing over the mountains heats as it descends, quickly melting snow accumulations and making Denver's winters milder than areas without this effect. The coldest temperature ever recorded in Denver was recorded on January 9, 1875 at -29 °F (-33.9 °C), and the last time Denver recorded a temperature below -20 °F (-29 °C) was during February 2007, when the low temperature was -22 °F (-30 °C). Although the coldest average monthly high temperature of the year in Denver has historically been January, in recent years December has had a colder average monthly high temperature.

Spring brings with it significant changes as Denver can be affected by air masses on all sides. Arctic air from the north can often combine with Pacific storm fronts bringing snow to the city. In fact, March is Denver's snowiest month, averaging 11.7 inches (29.7 cm) of snow. Additionally, warm air from the Gulf of Mexico can bring the first thunderstorms of the season, and continental warm air can bring summer-like warm and dry conditions.

Starting in mid-July, the monsoon brings tropical moisture into the city and with it come frequent short (and occasionally severe) late-afternoon thunderstorms. However, despite this tropical moisture, humidity levels during the day generally remain low. The average high during the summer is 88 °F (31 °C) and the average low is 59 °F (15 °C). The hottest temperature ever recorded in Denver is 105°F (41 °C) (National Weather Service).

In the autumn, the tropical monsoon flow dies down and as Arctic air begins to approach, it can combine with moisture from the Pacific Northwest to bring significant snowfall to the city – November is Denver's second snowiest month, and Denver's greatest recorded snowfall from a single storm, 45.7 inches (116 cm), fell in late autumn from December 1 to December 6, 1913.

Denver is located in the center of the Front Range Urban Corridor, between the Rocky Mountains to the west and the High Plains to the east. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 154.9 square miles (401.3 km²), of which 1.6 square miles (4.1 km²), or 1.03%, is water. The City and County of Denver is surrounded by only three other counties: Adams County to the north and east, Arapahoe County to the south and east, and Jefferson County to the west.