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CLM-2 <br />• <br />Description of Climate <br /> Jackson County lies on the east slope of the Rocky Mountains sad is <br /> bordered on three sides by major mountain ranges. The Park Range on the <br /> west, the Rabbit Ears Range on the south and the Medicine Bow Range on the <br /> east surround the vide and flat North Park. Altitudes range from less than <br /> 8000 feet in North Park to over 12,100 feet is the mountains. The location <br /> in the mid-latitudes of the interior of the North American Continent experi- <br /> ences large temperature changes from summer to winter and rapid changes of <br /> weather due to storms travelling from vest to east through the region. The <br /> high mountains surrounding Jackson County effectively block much of the <br /> atmospheric moisture that might otherwise eater the remainder of the county <br /> and also tend to suppress precipitation forming mechanisms in the interior <br /> of the county in wintertime. The transport of atmospheric water from the <br /> Gulf into central Colorado is not consistent. Consequently, most of the <br /> county has low relative humidity and low precipitation is the plains which <br /> increases with ,elevation in the mountains. <br /> The general topography of the county strongly influences the general <br />• climatic characteristics of the county. Local topographic features also <br /> have strong influences on local climate resulting in strong climatic varia- <br />- Lions within the county. In regions of varying topography, care must be <br /> exercised in extrapolating data taken at one location to estimate the climate <br /> at another location. <br /> Large temperature changes are observed at Walden where the monthly <br /> average varles from 15.6°F in January to 58.7°F in July. Amore informative <br /> description is evident from the monthly mean maximum and minimum temperatures. <br /> The mean maximum varies from 27.9'F is January to 77.9°F in July while the <br /> m{.,im+.m varies from 3.3°F is January to 39.5°F in July. The difference <br /> between the average maximum and minimum is 25°F is January and 38°F in July <br /> which is indicative of the day to night temperature change. Each year is <br /> not an average year and the variation experienced in the station is seen is <br />•' the warmest and coldest monthly mesa maxims sad miaim~ temperature. For <br /> example the warmest January minims was 15.3'F while the coldest January <br /> minimum was -8.5°F. This large variation changes to a smaller variation in <br />_ ewer. <br />