Topography

Colorado's topography greatly influences air movement, precipitation, and temperature.

While air moves freely over the eastern plains, mountains act as barriers to air movement.

In western Colorado, the Colorado Plateau forces air to rise as it moves eastward.

In the mountains, differences in elevation, slope, and aspect (the direction that a slope faces--north, south, east, or west) result in varying amounts of solar heating.

Steep slopes may cast shadows over regions below, resulting in cooler temperatures.

South facing slopes receive more sunlight than north facing slopes and as a result are usually drier.

Mountains influence precipitation patterns at adjacent lower areas, depending upon their closeness to those areas.

If the lower areas are close to the mountains, precipitation that did not fall in the mountainous regions will fall in these adjacent lower regions.

If the lower areas are farther from the mountains, less precipitation will fall. This situation occurs in North Park, South Park, and the San Luis Valley.

Cold, heavy air may accumulate in still mountain valleys, resulting in very cold temperatures.

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