DENVER -- --10:00 a.m. MDT October 18, 2009--

Is it fall or summer? With a ridge of high pressure sticking across the state today temperatures will be in low 80s. Were just a few degrees shy of the record high of 84 degrees today. It’s not likely, but not unheard of to have temperatures in the 80s in October.

However, personally I feel like we’re on a roller coaster of weather that’s giving us a preview of this winter’s likely weather pattern. I have to fill you in on the weather for the winter because now is the time to buy your winter wardrobe.

For those of you who haven’t heard, El Nino is expected to push through this winter. This sounds tricky but the outlook for Colorado’s winter is that temperatures will be warmer than usual, mainly sticking above 30 degrees.

Well, that’s it for me! Have a great week and don’t forget to donate your coats to Coats For Colorado. This time of year people really need and appreciate those coats! ---Katie Gauthier---

--3:15 p.m. MDT October 15, 2009--

What a day it has been in the 24/7 Weather Center!

I arrived at 7 News this morning around noon expecting a typical day at the weather center. The ridge of high pressure dominating the region, giving us some pleasant weather for the next couple of days, was going to make it a dull day in the weather center. I was wrong!

After I arrived at the studio, the hour-long 11 o’clock morning show was wrapping up. I started my day as I typically do; looking at the forecast and hoping to get a little practice on the weather wall.

Then a rush of excitement surged through the studio as news spread of a young six year old boy, now identified as Falcon Heene, had boarded a homemade balloon contraption and that had become airborne. 7 News morning anchors Mitch Jelniker and Bertha Lynn both rushed back into the studio, preparing to cut in live with the breaking news.

Meanwhile I was in the weather center with Richard Ortner. We had plenty to prepare for as well, once hearing the news.

Meteorologically speaking, the major concern was the direction and strength of the winds in northern Colorado where the balloon launched from. This contraption was at the mercy of the winds, and it was going in the direction of the wind flow.

Today the winds are following a strong north westerly flow. Surface winds, which generally are the slowest in the atmosphere, were around 10 to 20 mph. The higher in the atmosphere the stronger the winds get. The balloon reportedly reached about 8000 feet above sea level with is approximately 3000 feet above the surface here in Colorado. At that altitude the winds tended to be between 15 to 30 mph coming from the NW.

Not only do the winds get stronger higher in the altitude but it gets colder as well. Richard and I spent some time trying to find out what the approximate temperatures would be at that altitude. Today the approximate temperature at 3000 feet was anywhere from 23-27 degrees Fahrenheit. Well below freezing but still tolerable for a young six year old.

After continuous coverage by channel seven, the balloon came to a relatively soft landing; Falcon Heene unfortunately was not inside the balloon. Now the search begins to find Falcon, the sunset tonight is at 6:21 p.m., so a few more hours of daylight is left to aid in the search efforts.

My thoughts and hopes go out to the Heene family, and with luck Falcon will be brought home safely with an adventurous story to tell!

-Travis Knudsen

--5:59 a.m. MDT September 29, 2009-- Good Morning Colorado!

I am hoping you didn't have to get up as early as I did. Waking up around 3am isn't too bad it's the driving home at 7:30 that is hard. I love working as an intern here at channel 7 it's just fun to see the news in the making everyday. I am so happy today we will be in the 80s I am a fan of the warm weather. It makes me sad that a cold front is coming through I am not looking forward to the 50s throughout the week. But hey it is better than snow am I right? I know some of you are looking forward to the winter sports but I haven't learned how to snowboard or ski yet. I'm sure the snow will be here soon enough even though I'm trying to wish it away at least I get to start bringing out the winter wardrobe. Well whatever type of weather you like I hope you have a great week and stay warm!

~Caylee Phillips

--9:30 a.m. MDT September 20, 2009--

Hey guys!

First of all go buffs! Yay we finally won one! Alright, I’m going to stick with my term that this Sunday is the calm before the cold. Today is the last nice day for a while as a cold front moves in tonight. Snow is possible in the high country. By tomorrow our high will be only 55 degrees! What? It seems like just yesterday when 55 was the LOW for the day. Old man winter is knocking on the door. Have a great week! -Katie Gauthier----

--9:00 a.m. MDT August 30, 2009--

Hey Colorado! It’s Katie again! I was actually fortunate enough to stay on the 7News team for another semester, so I will be here this fall to bring in the snow! I was at the Emmy awards and was very excited when I found out that 7 News earned the Emmy of excellence, and I completely agree with the award choice. These guys are great!

Anyways, my latest deal is trying to avoid the swine flu since I go to CU Boulder. So far so good, I’ll let you know if that changes! Other than that it’s back to school. Since it’s only been a week my hardest task has been trying to figure out what the weather is going to be when I wake up and get ready for my day.

Our weather has been a little off base this summer, as I’m sure most of you have noticed. Here’s a fun fact for you, we have already seen more moisture so far this year, than all of last year. In 2008, we received 10.21 inches of precipitation. In 2009, so far we’ve filled up the rain gage with 15.08 inches of precipitation! So flip flops, tennis shoes, or a mask to avoid the swine flu… typical college decisions.

----Katie Gauthier ----

--6:43 a.m. MDT August 27, 2009--

Hey there a new intern here I am Caylee Phillips and this is my first weather blog.

The mornings are early that's for sure but really it isn't as hard to wake up as I thought and how everything comes together on Channel 7 News is really interesting. They put me on the news Tuesday that was a little weird but of course fun although nobody I know was up that early to actually see it. Well this is only my second day so I don't have much to say but it seems like a lot of fun and I love being so invovled with putting the weather stuff together. I updated the weather line that went well but I had to do it twice doing things betwen commercials is a little hard sometimes.

Well I'll write again soon.

~Caylee Phillips

--6:40 a.m. MDT August 10, 2009--

I finally have a weather story to tell everybody! For about the last 5 years the highlight of my summer has been Warped Tour. In all that time it's only rained really hard once. That storm was insane but that is another story. This story goes like this.

The day began like every Warped Tour, lots of sun and heat. While yesterday's high was cooler than usual for warped tour, standing in the sun for 12 hours with no shade makes it feel quite hot (and gave me a sunburn). Fast forward through tons of amazing music and we get to the last band of the evening: 3OH!3. Right before they started playing, there was quite a light show to the west of us. I've never seen such epic cloud lightning. After each flash the crowd would scream and more people would leave. I, however, have only seen 3OH!3 once and since I go to school in an out of way place I don't get to go to many concerts. So I stayed.

Right as they started playing, it started raining. It was typical Colorado rain at first with massive drops but not many of them. I thought it might just drizzle on us. I was wrong. Two songs in it started POURING. I was drenched from head to toe within 30 seconds. Then the pea sized hail started. That really cleared out the crowd. But I'm so hardcore that I stayed until the very end of their set (which they cut short due to lightning and the monsoon).

By then it was pointless to run because I was already soaked, so my friend and I walked quickly to the car. By the time we reached the gate, the ground had become a river and pea sized hail was pelting us. Two minutes later, the weather decided to hail nickel-sized hail on us! I can deal with pea sized, but nickel is not cool. It really hurts. So we took shelter until the hail was over and THEN ran to the car, with inches of water swirling around us.

This is long, but you haven't had a blog in awhile so I have to make up for it. Tomorrow is my last day here. I've had an amazing experience and this has solidified that this is what I want to do. That's lucky because I have one year left in my major. I'd like to thank everyone at the studio for being epic, and thank you all for reading. Also, hire me next year.

-Jen Kelley

--5:15a.m. MDT August 4, 2009--

Time has really flown by this summer and I can't believe that my last shift here at Channel 7 is next Thursday, August 13th. Even more amazing, I can't believe that I begin my last year at CU-Boulder in less than 3 weeks. Going into my last year is exciting but is also a little freaky. I am worried, like most are, about being able to find a job once I graduate since the job market isn't doing so well right now. Hopefully, it will be better by May.

One thing that is nice about driving to Denver from Boulder at this time in the morning is seeing the beautiful moon right over the mountains. It is not quite full, but it was huge and a pretty golden yellow! It was sending light onto the mountains, highlighting the ridgeline. Makes getting up this early even more worth it. If I didn't have this internship, I would have missed such an amazing sight.

However, I am looking forward to returning to a normal sleep schedule for a couple of days before my 18 hour credit Fall Semester begins on the 24th of August!

I will try to write more before I leave, so until then, enjoy the hot and dry temperatures this week. I personally am missing the wet, cooler weather from last week.

~*Kelli Green*~

--10:30a.m. MDT July 31, 2009--

Well its sure a sad day. It is my last day as an intern here at Channel 7. I have learned so much not just about the weather but about the career of T.V. news broadcasting. I found what to do and where to go to pursue my future career as a reporter and eventually a meteorologist. It has been a once and a life time opportunity for me to meet everyone here.

You know the reaction that I have been getting lately has been, "Wow it must be hard to wake up at 2am and drive to Denver." My response is usually, " Well, I sure have become a morning person, but if you want it bad enough and love what were doing its not hard at all." Even though this was just an internship for me and not an actual career, I still loved it and enjoyed it tremendously.

Everyone here at 7, reporters and producers alike, are amazing and great to learn from. Its going to be hard to leave since this has now become a part of my life, but I will carry it and cherish my time here forever. To everyone on the channel 7 news crew, thank you so much for this amazing opportunity and I hope i can continue to stay connected with all of you.

Peace, Erika Bratten

--07:01 a.m. MDT July 27, 2009-- Well I'm back from vacation and glad to be back in regularly hot weather. Waking up to a 95 degree LOW was definitely an experience, but I think I'll stick to that being the high. Because obviously I can control the weather in Colorado (little known fact). But my trip was good.

I also got to go hiking over the weekend and it was absolutely beautiful. I got up incredibly early on Saturday and hiked up Grey and Torreys. While there were clouds, it didn't start raining until after we were down the mountains. If you're looking for a great 14er to hike, I'd highly suggest that one. The only thing is the road up to the trailhead is NOT SUITABLE for cars. I don't care if your car is a beast, it will not make it. The bad thing is that I'm so sore that I'm walking like a zombie.

The weather this week is going to feel more like Wisconsin than the 303. I think that's all the proof you need that I control the weather. I mean why else would we see so much rain and cooler temperatures this summer? Because of El Nino? Psh.

Ok. I'm done joking with you. Have a great day.

-Jen Kelley

--05:56 a.m. MDT July 27, 2009-- My oh my how time flies. I can't believe that just three months ago.. or so, I was getting ready to jump out of my skin after being so excited about having this intern here at channel 7. I couldn't wait to begin and now its already coming to an end... already.

I only have three days left and I must admit that its a bit bittersweet. I mean I became so close with everyone here, the reporters, the producers, all the other interns and of course Lisa. They have been such great teachers and I learned so much from this summer internship. Having this be part of my life for two and half months is whats going to make it so hard to leave.

However, being here at the station three days a week at 4:30 and waking at 2am for an hour drive to Denver, well as you can imagine I am not going to miss the early mornings. I plan to take everything I have learned and take it back with me to Western State for my final year.

I want to help both the communication department and my peers there build a news show, and of course keep what I learned and apply it to my future career. No matter what though my eye will always be on the sky.

Thanks all so very much. - Erika Bratten

--05:56 a.m. MDT July 16, 2009--

Good Morning! Well, it's another early morning here in the Weather Center. It's been a little difficult to wake up around 3 AM each Thursday. I usually have to have my morning coffee before I'm really ready to go. Although it takes me a bit of time to wake up, everyone on the morning broadcast is always surprisingly full of energy, which makes it a lot easier and tons of fun to be here! The shift usually involves some sort of singing and dancing during commercials, so it's usually extremely entertaining.

Thursday looks like a beautiful day thus far. Temperatures are already in the 60s and are expected to reach the 90s, and...there is little chance of storms! I'm just relieved to be out of Saint Louis humidity. I never realized how much I loved dry Colorado weather until I left! I'm going to get outside and enjoy it while I still can and I hope you all will too!

-Meghan Dwyer

--05:15 a.m. MDT July 14, 2009--

Good morning everyone! It has been a while since I have written anything on here so I figured I would take advantage of it. It's weird to think that this summer is half over and all of my intern friends will soon be leaving and heading back to their out-of-state schools while I am left here by myself. I'm going to miss all of them and won't know what to do without other weathernerds around me.

Last week, I got a chance to switch shifts with Matt Jones for the Thursday afternoon shift. It was very different from what I am used to here in the morning, but it was a lot of fun. I got to work with Scott and Mike Nelson and finally got to work with the chroma key and did pretty well once I got over my stage fright, which I must say is so bad, it's like an illness. Scott was great though and helped me through it. Thanks for that! I am probably going to get to switch with Matt Jones again this week and I am hoping for some severe weather so I can get the feeling of a "crazy afternoon" in the weather center.

Like Jen Kelley, I am also a huge Harry Potter nerd and will be heading to the 12:01am showing this coming evening! I am really excited and have been waiting for this forever!

Until next time,

~*Kelli Green*~

--07:01 a.m. MDT July 13, 2009--

Morning. Summer sure has gone fast for me this year! Although it's only half over, I only have three more weeks of this lovely internship. Sad day. I'm super excited because tomorrow I get to do green screen for the first time. Because there is a 5 am and 6 am show, there usually isn't any time for me to be on camera myself.

Last weekend I went camping around Copper Mountain and it was perfect camping weather. There was a little thunder and lightning, but not much rain. I'm also excited for tomorrow because I am a total Harry Potter nerd and the 6th movie has its' midnight showing!

You won't hear from me next week because I'll be in Vegas, trying not to die from the heat. Hopefully I don't melt. It's highly unlikely I will melt because I'm not made of wax.

That's about it for me. Have a great Monday, yo.

-Jen Kelley

--05:40 p.m. MDT July 11, 2009--

Hello everyone, this is weather intern Marcus Walter from the 7NEWS 24/7 Weather Center.

Today has been fairly quiet in the weather studio. We have been watching a few severe thunderstorms around the region, but for the most part these storms have been relatively short lived. This weather will be the trend over the next couple of days. On another note, I think it is really interesting how June was so wet and cool and how July has been so dry and warm, relatively speaking (I know it is still early in July). In turns out during this past month of June the temperature at the Denver International Airport never reach above 90 degrees! The last time this happened was in 2003 and before that it was in the 1970's. But either way, we are finally experiencing the Colorado weather that most of us have come to expect and enjoy.

Enjoy the nice weather this week.

Marcus W. Weather Intern

--04:30 p.m. MDT July 8, 2009--

Hey all, Hope everyone had a great 4th of July. I heard it was wet and muggy here over the weekend... sorry to hear, but I must admit I wish I was here to enjoy the nice cool weather. I was in the pits of the heat in Vegas for the holiday weekend and I must say the first two days weren't bad but man the last two sucked the air right out of me. As I was taking a nap on Friday after a 12 hour drive, I started to hear the sharp thunder shake the roof. I woke and looked out the window and to my surprise it was pouring.. in Vegas? I was excited and I talked with the family I was staying with and they said it hadn't rained like that in two years. Hey if that kind of weather follows me, well that's just alright. But like I said it didn't stay nice and cool on Sunday we were in the car driving to the strip and the car read 109 hot dang! Monday, the day we left, well not much of a different story but hey it was great for lots of swimming and BBQs. Let me know your fun and interesting weather stories. - Erika Bratten

--04:30 p.m. MDT July 6, 2009--

Another Monday, another round of severe storm. Today in the 24/7 Weather center it started early with severe thunderstorm warnings in southern Colorado, around the Pueblo area. As for now we are keeping a watchful eye on a few storms to the west of Fort Collins moving towards Denver. If we are lucky things will calm down and I will be able to practice on the chromakey after the 5:00 show today. I am very pleased with my growing abilities on the key, maybe at this rate if I'm lucky I will be able to get a job after college to start paying off all those student loans that are accumulating in my name.

The holiday weekend was very eventful for me, if you happened to be down at the Cherry Creek Arts Festival you probably saw The 24/7 Weather Experience. We had a booth set up for the young, and young-at-heart to take a stab at reporting "live" on a weather event (Flood, Snow Storm, Tornado, Severe Thunderstorm). It was tons of fun to watch the little kids read the script and get excited to see themselves on TV as a weather reporter. It was a great event and I can't wait to run the booth next year, hopefully I will see you there!

-Travis Knudsen

--07:15 a.m. MDT July 6, 2009--

Happy Monday everybody. This past weekend was really fun for me. As you may know, I was at the Cherry Creek Arts Festival Friday and had the opportunity to witness an unbelievable rain storm. I was helping out in the Azteca booth and the sky turned dark and I thought that it might rain a little. Well it rained a little, and then a little more, until it was a torrential downpour and our booth was almost floating away! We had just put up the sides on the tent but we had put them up wrong so in order to keep the paintings dry, we had to hold the sides closed, causing us to get pretty drenched. Our booth was also on the corner so I was up to my ankles in water.

Even though it was sort of crazy for awhile, I enjoyed every second of it. I mean I am a meteorology major. What else would you expect?! The best part of the weekend was that I still got to see a firework show, even though it rained on the 4th. Well faithful readers, that's all I have to update you on, so enjoy your week and stay cool.

-Jen Kelley

--01:30 p.m. MDT July 5, 2009--

Hello again, this is Marcus Walter, weather intern at the 7News 24/7 Weather Center. Today's weather has been realitively calm across much of the region, but there are few thunderstorms starting to develop mainly south and soutwest of Denver. And since the weather is relatively calm, it is relatively calm in the weather center.

I hope everyone's July 4th was great. Mine turned out to be pretty good. I was able to check out the Cherry Creek Arts Festival for the first time. That was pretty cool. There was such a large variety of artwork. There was also great music to complement the event. I will definitely have to come again next year.

While at the event I stopped by the 7News 24/7 Weather Center's weather booth. The booth was set up mainly for kids to come and practice giving a weather report on camera and then watch a replay of their report on a large flat screen TV outside the booth. That was also pretty neat and I think the kids really enjoyed it, especially when they got to see themselves on camera.

If you are interesting in checking the arts festival or the weather booth, today is your last chance to do so. It is well worth the trip.

Until next time,

Marcus W. Weather Intern

--06:00 a.m. MDT July 2, 2009--

Good morning everyone! This is Kelli Green writing again after almost two weeks. I and Jen Kelley, in fact, have both written before about how 4 a.m. is not that bad, but today feels earlier than usual because last night, at about 11:00 p.m. I was awoken suddenly by a huge crack of thunder that shook my apartment and startled my little kitty. Once my eyes were open, I saw the flash of another bolt of lightning and instantly another crack of thunder!! That continued for about 20 minutes, keeping me awake for awhile, so this morning is a little tough; not to mention the burden of my allergies acting up. I'm sure all of you can relate with the complaint of allergies, it seems like everyone is suffering them.

Hopefully my allergies will leave before this weekend when I will be at the Cherry Creek Arts Festival with my fellow interns and the 24/7 Weather team! I'm really excited to help out since I have never been to this festival in the 22 years I have been here in Colorado! I hope to meet some of our readers at the festival this weekend, so be sure to come on down!

Until next time, be sure to have a safe and wonderful Independence Day!

~Kelli Green~

--02:45 p.m. MDT July 1, 2009--

Howdy! This is Kelly Scheps, and I am back! . I have just returned from a short journey across Central America in the beautiful country of Costa Rica. I'd have to say it wasn't much different than being here , with the sunny mornings and terribly rainy afternoons. It was beautiful! However, I am glad to be back in action here at the station. Today isn't looking to be busy, but I am keeping my fingers crossed for a sunny holiday weekend. Speaking of the holiday weekend, the 24/7 Weather team, including all of the interns, will be out at the Cherry Creek Arts Festival this upcoming weekend. It's going to be very exciting and everyone should try and make it out! So far things have been wonderful, and can't wait for some more exciting weather to come!

Until then...

Kelly Scheps--

--02:00 p.m. MDT June 30, 2009--

Hello everybody. This is Matt Jones. I haven't written on the blog yet so I figured since it is such a slow weather day I should write something. I go to school at Metro and am in my third year. I've been interested in meteorology since I was five. At that time I was living in Florida and I remember going through hurricane Andrew. Ever since then, I was obsessed with the weather. The month of June was definitely crazy as far as severe weather. It seems like every time I was in the weather center, there were tornado warnings. Recently I've been stormchasing a lot and I love it. It is the experience of a lifetime. But it is nice to have some calm weather for a change. I'm ready for some really hot, dry Colorado days. I can finally go to the pool and improve my golf game! Hope to see everyone at the Cherry Creek Arts Festival!

-Matt Jones

--06:00 a.m. MDT June 29, 2009--

Good morning everbody. It's Jen and boy am I glad to write in here again. Why? Because today, I am going to tell you about the inner Jen.

One of the things I'm really passionate about (besides the weather) is knitting. I'm not just a habitual knitter, I'm a lifestyle knitter. I knit socks, sweaters, hats, gloves, and little plush animals. I've even knit a bikini (I just haven't worn it). It's awesome. I am super excited for this coming week because it will finally be nice enough to knit outside. And there is nothing cooler than knitting in public (I'm sure there's a pun in there about staying cool with wool in the sun but I'm not witty enough this morning to think of it).

Now that we're closer, I feel comfortable telling everybody that another reason I'm looking forward to this week is because it's going to be drier. Don't get me wrong, I like this green, non-forest fire Colorado, but I see all the green I need when I'm in Wisconsin (for college if you forgot). I miss the hot, dusty Colorado of my youth. The Colorado where I didn't have allergies for the entire month of June. The Colorado where it's 90 degrees for two months in a row and the humidity doesn't get above 20%.

To look on the bright side of my complaining, I did get to see a ton of thunderstorms and that was epic. If you feel like you know me now, be sure to come down to the Cherry Creek Arts Festival on Friday and say hi to me! If we're not too busy I'll probably be knitting.

Enjoy the start of your work week! -Jen Kelley

--05:00 p.m. MDT June 25, 2009--

Hello again, this Marcus Walter, weather intern at the 24/7 Weather Center.

Its been about two weeks since I last wrote. I have been away traveling to Portland, OR, for a conference on broadcast meteorology, and then to Chicago for a scholarship event.

I had a really good time a the broadcast meteorology conference (except for losing my backpack and digital camera) and met a lot of broadcast meteorologists from all over the country. Portland was a pretty nice city, with great weather.

While in attendance at the conference, there was a presentation that reminded everyone about the dangers of leaving kids and/or animals in cars during the summer. One of the most amazing facts learned from the presentation was that no matter what the temperature is outside, on a sunny day, the interior of a car can warm up 20 degrees in just ten minutes. So on an 80 degree day, the interior of a car could be close to 100 degrees in about ten minutes. This would definitely be dangerous for kids and animals, or any living thing left in a car during the summer. So please if you can never leave kids or animals in cars on hot days.

But again I enjoyed the conference and I am love being back in Denver, enjoying the summer heat. Until next time.

Marcus W. Weather Intern

--07:30 a.m. MDT June 28, 2009--

Hey everyone!

I don’t have a lot to fill you guys in on, but this Sunday we might see some severe weather in the afternoon, so do be careful. I’m excited for the upcoming week because temperatures will stick in the low 90s and it will be nice and warm, that means boating at Cherry Creek!

Unfortunately, we weren’t able to cast our weather show live from the Bike MS event yesterday but I’ve got good news. For the Fourth of July weekend, we’re going to set up camp at the Cherry Creek Arts Festival. Sporadically, all four 24/7 meteorologists, and about 12 weather interns will be joining you for your holiday weekend. Stop by and say hi and we will try to keep you entertained. Cheers!

-Katie Gauthier---

--05:00 p.m. MDT June 25, 2009--

Hey all, Travis again.

Today is a boring day in the weather center, and it looks to be a continuing trend, at least for the next few days. Upper level winds look to be turning zonal for the next few days. This means that winds aloft are going in almost a straight line from the west to the east across the nation. When this happens you can expect boring weather.

Over the last few weeks when we have seen all the tornadoes in Colorado it is due to those upper level winds coming from the southwest part of Colorado and moving to the north east. Conditions like that are an excellent set up for strong wind sheer on thunderstorms. It is wind sheer that can start spinning a thunderstorm and potentially create a tornado. So to say the least conditions look to be unfavorable for tornado producing thunderstorm, I'm sure I know I'll appreciate the break from all the severe weather, at least for a couple days.

-Travis Knudsen

--06:15 a.m. MDT June 25, 2009--

I hope everyone is enjoying the beautiful summer temperatures! I know that you're all probably sick of the storms, but here at the Weather Center it makes our lives interesting. Tuesday was a busy afternoon with lots of flooding and even a tornado spotting in Elbert County. It is always really exciting being in the Center when viewers call to report the severe weather they are seeing around the area. It is always interesting to see how the entire broadcast gets flipped around when severe weather heads through the area. It is hectic but a great way to learn. In the morning it is always pretty nice. We get to enjoy the nice shots of the sunrise and keep an eye on the radar to get an idea of how severe our weather will get later.

Thursday will probably bring storms again so stay alert in case any of your storms turn severe! Enjoy the cooler weekend and the beautiful work week heading your way! -Meghan Dwyer --08:00 a.m. MDT June 23, 2009--

I know we weren’t supposed to get much severe weather this week but, let me tell you how exciting Monday evening was in Larimer County.

I went to take video of all the lightning around me after hearing about an approaching severe thunderstorm. To my surprise, while I was out filming, I was shocked to see a few funnels. I was able to capture these dancing clouds… finally. But due to the night time sky, the footage was a bit blurred.

As the storm started to approach Loveland I sat on my front porch, like normal when a storm approaches, and continued to film. I heard many different warnings go out over the T.V. inside my house, 1 flash flood and 2 tornado warnings.

As the storm teased me by building west and north of me, I waited for anything big, hoping to catch it. Then it happened… The wall approached slowly but with much force and all at once we got a downpour of rain and pea sized hail.

The lightening was flashing non-stop I felt as if I was in a club with a strobe light. Most of it was cloud lightning, with just a few cloud to ground lightning. The rain continued for quite some time, but diminished in the east near Greeley. What a night it was and it made for a 22-hour day for me. -Erika Bratten

--05:30 a.m. MDT June 23, 2009--

Good Morning! This is my first time blogging here at 7News as well!

My name is Kelli Green, a senior at the University of Colorado at Boulder majoring in Environmental Studies specializing in Climate with a minor in Atmospheric and Oceanic Studies-Whew, that's a mouth-full. I currently live in Boulder with my crazy little kitty, Moscow and my boyfriend of 4 years, Tim. I am a native of Colorado, born and raised in Westminster. It may seem as though I didn't go too far from home for college, but trust me; once you drive over that hill and down into Boulder, you're in completely new territory.

This summer has already been very hectic with working full-time at BJ's Restaraunt and Brewhouse in Westminster, taking summer classes, and interning here at 7News. One of my summer classes just ended, which is why it took me so long to write to you all. I was up in the mountains at the Cal-Wood education center, camping for the past two weeks for a field studies course. I had a blast, but was bummed to hear about all of the exciting weather that I have been missing here at home; I'm very jealous of the afternoon interns.

I work the early morning shifts at 4:30 a.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays with Lisa Hidalgo. I work with Jen Kelley on Tuesday morning and Meghan Dwyer on Thursday morning. I have also had a chance to meet a couple of our other interns up at Windsor a few weeks back and it is really exciting to meet so many people with such different backgrounds wtih similar interests. Personally, I enjoy conversing with other "weather-nerds" because my other friends just do not understand.

I am hoping to learn even more through my experience/opportunity here at the 24/7 Weather Center this summer, and my ultimate goal is to join our amazing group of storm chasers on one of their adventures. Severe weather is probably my biggest passion and I would love to get into the middle of it with them sometime this summer and chase down a tornado! :)

I am greatly enjoying my time here at 7News and 4:30am isn't too bad once you get used to it. Working with Lisa Hidalgo, Richard Ortner, and Mike Nelson has been a wonderful experience. I have yet to meet Corey Christiansen, but am sure I will have the pleasure over the Fourth of July weekend at the Cherry Creek Arts Festival.

Until next time and thank you for reading,

-Kelli Green

--04:30 p.m. MDT June 22, 2009--

Well hello! This is my first time blogging here at 7News.

My name is Travis Knudsen, a Jr. at the University of Northern Colorado seeking a degree Meteorology. I live up in Greeley with my boyfriend, Mike, trying to make it through school. I also work part-time at the Bed Bath & Beyond in Greeley, because rent is due at the first of every month ;-).

I work at the 7News studio on Saturday evenings with Corey Christiansen and intern Daryl, and Monday evenings with Mike Nelson and intern Kelly Scheps. I am very excited to have the opportunity to be here and learn all the things to learn. I have learned so far this summer.

The last couple weeks have been very busy days here in the studio with all the severe weather. Now things seem to be calming down as we get wedged under a highe pressure system that will move its way through Colorado this week. Things do look to cool of a little for the weekend of course, but not too cool, mid to upper 80s for the weekend with a few rain showers. I’m looking forward to next Saturday when I will be working with Richard Ortner for the first time, he usually does morning so I tend to miss watching him in front of the chromakey.

Speaking of the chromakey, it is HARD! I do feel lucky that I don’t seem to have problems with lifting my right arm and watch myself lift the left one; some people can have problems with the inversion. I do however have trouble speaking smoothly and flowing. Apparently my favorite word is “um” but, I feel I’m getting better. I practice as often as I can, occasionally it is hard to get people to turn on the camera at the chromakey because no one seems to be here midday. Mike does always lets me practice after the show which I appreciate greatly, because sometimes I feel like I need all the practice I can get!

I’ll try to blog a little more, but I’m never sure what so talk about on a blog, so it is lower on the list of things for me to do! I don’t feel nearly as funny and witty as other interns too, but I try my best.

Thanks for keeping up with us lowly Interns on The 24/7 Weather Intern's Blog, we appreciate it, and we are looking for jobs too! *hint* *hint* ;-)

-Travis Knudsen.

--06:00 a.m. MDT June 22, 2009--

Oh Boy… Well the first official week of summer has started and looking at the forecast I don’t know how to express the lack of excitement I have for the up-coming heat… ( I mean I’m use to Gunnison which sees mild summer temps and below freezing weather).

I guess what I mean by this is… I like the cold weather and I was enjoying the cool rainy severe weather we were having earlier this month. Oh well, back to somewhat normal temperatures.

But if you are anything like me, you will be found in a swimsuit and a cheap kiddy pool trying to pass the heat this week. 90 degrees not my friend. But hey I know many of you like the heat so enjoy…really.

-Erika Bratten

--05:30 a.m. MDT June 22, 2009--

Good morning all, this is Jen checking back in with you, our loyal readers. How was everyone's Fathers Day? Mine was absolutely splendid. I got to go putt-putt golfing with my dad and sister AND I even got a little tan. I was kind enough to let my dad win and even bought him coffee. I am such a great daughter.

I'm really looking forward to this week because of the weather. It's going to be hot all week and after spending a winter in Wisconsin, I need it. Is there anything you want to know? Any burning questions you need answered? Well just email any of the meteorologists with questions for me and I'll try my very best to answer them.

The last thing I want to touch on is how awesome everyone here is. If you're like me and not usually a morning person, you understand how being around nice (but not overly nice) people can make those early hours. So thank you awesome people I work/intern with. That's all for me! Have a great day!

-Jen Kelley

--10:00 a.m. MDT June 21, 2009--

It’s been a shocking weekend so far, and I mean literally. Yesterday, we had a live weather shot at the Colorado Mountain Club in Golden and Richard got to try out a Van de Graaff (A large globe of electricity that simulates lighting’s energy). Well being the lucky intern I am, I was holding the microphone for Richard while he was on camera and we kept getting shocked.

This experiment reminded me just how careful you need to be outside in Colorado storms. If your hair is ever sticking up straight when you are outside, then you are way too close to lightning and need to take cover immediately. If a small globe can generate enough electricity to shock two people, then can you imagine what a mile long lightning bolt can do during a summer storm?

As always, I loved meeting new people this weekend! Next Saturday the 27th, come on out to the MS Bike Ride up in Westminster. You can watch Richard Ortner live and in action. I’ll see you then!

-Katie Gauthier

--4:04 p.m. MDT June 16, 2009--

Hi everyone! My name is Meghan Dwyer and I am a Denver native studying meteorology at St. Louis University in Missouri. I'm back for the summer and have been having a blast interning at the 24/7 Weather Center! It's been especially interesting the past week with all of the storms, and it has kept us all busy here at the station.

Looks like we will finally get a break though. Today was beautiful and tomorrow will likely be just as nice so I intend to get outside and enjoy it before afternoon storms roll back in on Thursday. Although it's not as busy, the nice weather for today provided a much needed break!

Thanks for reading! -Meghan Dwyer

--5:15 p.m. MDT June 15, 2009--

Well the sun did peak through the clouds for a little while here in the Denver Metro area. However, today was an eventful day! When I left the house this morning I knew that something was bound to happen with the towering cumulus clouds already starting to build.

The studio was quiet for the first five minutes of my arrival when all of a sudden tornado warnings began being issued at 1:23! From that point on, it was crazy! Phone calls started to pour in with reports of large hail and tornado touch downs. The tornado down in Elizabeth today was phenomenal. It was one of the biggest we have seen in this 9 day streak of severe weather. It was actually my first time to be in the studio during a severe weather event and it was really very cool. Travis, another intern, and I were busy running around updating Mike and Lisa with new watches and warnings. Like Marcus said, it's like we get a work out while we work?

Living in Colorado this summer, I think I have been closer to a tornado than I have ever been in Texas! Isn't Texas where most of the tornadoes occur? Atleast, that's what I thought!

Sunshine looks promising for tomorrow, atleast more than we've seen since..May!

Until Next Time,

Kelly Scheps

--7:00 a.m. MDT June 15, 2009--

Good morning all! This is Jen Kelley and this is the first time I've written in here. I'm here Mondays and Tuesdays way before you get out of bed. I go to school in Ashland, Wisconsin and attend a tiny liberal arts college called Northland College. I am now a senior and will graduate this year with a double major in meteorology and broadcast meteorology and minors in physics and writing.

Today I am going to tell all of you that getting up at 3:30 in the morning is actually not that bad. If you are interested in being a broadcast meteorologist you might be thinking that there is no way you would ever be able to get up that early but you should reconsider. Usually I'm not a morning person, but I guess since it's pre-morning I wake up rearing and ready to go. Plus, breakfast is a fabulous meal.

So far I have had an amazing experience as an intern. I like to think that i've become an expert in the many different ways to say, "Partly cloudy with afternoon thunderstorms."

Coming back home from Wisconsin has been really exciting! It's sort of ridiculous how much severe weather we have had this week and it's exciting to actually look at the sky and use my academic knowledge of how storms form to wow the people around me.

That's my two cents so have a terrific day and if you're lucky, you might hear from me again tomorrow!

-Jen Kelley

--5:30 p.m. MDT June 14, 2009--

Hello again, this is Marcus Walter, weather intern in the 24/7 weathercenter.

Today was another exciting weather day. Several severe rotating thunderstorms moved across Denver and through eastern Colorado, one of which produced a funnel cloud outside the Colorado Rockies game, forcing a game delay and causing everyone to be evacuated from the field and out the stands.

The severe weather also meant that there was a lot of running around in the weather studio today. I think 7NEWS may be able to market future weather internships as "part internship, part workout program" :).

But overall my experience still has been pretty amazing.

With the severe weather today and the fact people were out at the Rockies game, I began to think about how vulnerable people can be while attending sports events, especially outdoor sports, during inclement weather. A good friend of mine by the name of Joel Gratz actually co-authored a book that specifically addresses this danger facing many large outdoor events.

His research dealt with the policies and responses of large outdoor stadiums to the threat of severe weather – lightning in particular. Although severe weather and player safety has been addressed, severe weather and fan safety is an area that has seen little attention.

If you have the chance to look up the text, please do. Either way, I would encourage anyone who goes to large outdoor events to take the proper precautions to protect yourself and your families during these events.

I will be away for next weekend in Portland, OR, attending the AMS Conference on Broadcast Meteorology. So see you in about two weeks.

Have great start to your work week.

-Marcus W.

--9:45 a.m. MDT June 14, 2009--

I’m baaackk! It’s Katie again, and I have plenty of stories. Yesterday Richard and I went to the Disney’s A Christmas Carol train tour and did the weather portion of the show from there.

I hope you all got a chance to check it out. The weather there was crazy; it was snowing the whole time! (Fake snow of course.)

After that I got to cruise down to the Broncos mini- camp and do some interviews with the new coach and potentially new players. It’s a whole new team. They better go as far in their season as our lovely Nuggets went this spring!

Later that day, I got to film my first story about a hotel parking garage. To say the least, my weekends have been packed full and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

This weather has been keeping me busy on my off days, as I try to convince my mom to chase local thunderstorms. We took some great pictures of extremely dark clouds in Castle Rock on the 11th and also got hammered with hail on the drive home. Opps!

Most Coloradans are wondering what’s going on with this weather, but this is exactly how I remember it when I was growing up. The early weeks of June had severe weather, (that I used to be embarrassingly afraid of) and then temperatures were blistering in August.

So, maybe we are just getting back to the norm. I'll find out and get back to ya! Katie Gauthier---

--3:30 pm MDT June 12, 2009--

Howdy!

My name is Kelly Scheps and I am one of the lucky, chosen one's to be an intern at ABC 7 for the summer. I am going in to my senior year at Texas A&M University majoring in meteorology. I am only here for the summer, and making the most of my experience as an intern!

Being a broadcasting meteorologist is something that I have always dreamed of becoming. I am honored to be working some of the finest Meteorologist's around. I have only been here for about a month now, and Mike Nelson, Corey Christiansen, Lisa Hidalgo, and Richard Ortner have taught me so much. While I love being in the studio I have really enjoyed going to Bennett and Windsor to help people program their 24/7 Weather Alert Radios! I got to meet all of the other interns, especially the one's who work the morning shift at 4 a.m.!

I am not well versed on the weather that happens in Denver, being from Texas and all, so I am learning quick that the weather can change quite fast. From the sunshine in the morning to the tornadoes in the afternoon, it has been a wild start to my summer. Things have been just crazy around the station. Just when we think there will be no severe weather, a tornado warning pops up, and we go live.

This internship really has already been more than I ever could have expected. I'd say it exceeded my expectations!

When the sun shines again, if it ever does, I'll be back!

Kelly Scheps

--7:10 am MDT June 10, 2009--

Hello all, my name is Erika Bratten and I am from Western State College of Colorado in Gunnison, the ice box of the state. I am a communication student with an emphasis in film and a minor in journalism. However, my interest in the weather started when I was very young.

I was always outside in the rain, hail, lightning and whatever else came my way. When I got old enough to drive, I would chase storms around Northern Colorado where I am from. Any who, it has been an exciting week with 5 tornados on Sunday and another yesterday in Firestone... love it.

I do plan to get my AMS after Western State, so through the summer if you have any stories, information, advice, please let me know, I am here to learn. Thanks

--6:00 pm MDT June 7, 2009--

Hello again, this is Marcus Walter and Tony Dawson.

Today, if you don't already know, was a very interesting weather. There were at least 5 tornadoes across the Denver Metro area today after a cold front passed through the region. These storms caused significant damage to many buildings and vehicles in the region.

If you could imagine, we interns were working very hard with the Chief Meteorologist Mike Nelson and Meteorologist Richard Ortner to get all of the severe weather information to public. And for the most part we think we did really well. And some viewer even wrote emails to let us know this.

Another good thing about today was that even though we had severe weather, no one has yet to be reported injured from the storms. For that we are truly thankful.

Until next weekend.

-Marcus Walter -Tony Dawson

--10:00 am MDT June 7, 2009--

Hey guys! You can finally put a name to the back of the head that you’ve seen in the 24/7 Weather center lately. My name is Katie Gauthier and I'm a summer weather and news intern at 7News. Crazy!!

I go to CU Boulder and I'm now a senior. Go Buffs!! I work Saturday, Sunday, and Wednesday mornings, around 4 am. That’s right, I can now tell you what it’s like to wake up and leave for work before my lovely roommates come home and go to bed.

I’ve been fortunate enough to work with all four meteorologists at the station and have learned the same lesson from each of them; weather changes constantly, especially in Colorado.

I've been here about a month and have had so many cool opportunities, like throwing a ball to Birdman, which was quite possibly the best day of my life. I’ve been down to the great town of Bennett to program weather radios and plan on getting out of the studio as much as I can to see all of you!

Unlike the rest of Colorado, I'm waiting for a tornado to develop on a weekend so that I can go out with my favorite photojournalist, Eric Goody, and chase storms! Since I'm not a runner, I find other outlets that give me the same rush, like a great day of unpredictable weather.

Anyways, I’ll be here until school starts, keeping you up to date with whatever the winds blow in!

-Katie Gauthier

--5:30 pm MDT May 31, 2009--

Hello again, this is Marcus Walter, Weather Intern at KMGH-TV here in Denver.

I am entering my second week as an intern and still I have no complaints. Overall the people are still nice and I have started to meet other interns, one in particular, Tony Dawson from University of Northern Colorado; he is a pretty cool guy.

Today started out pretty interesting; we had a couple of warnings for Severe Weather to the north and south of Denver, mostly hail and heavy rain, no threat for tornados do to the lack of wind shear (no sharp contrast in wind speed and/or direction through the atmosphere). Either way watching the storms on radar was pretty interesting, they were very text-bookie, with several gust fronts and outflow boundaries that produced spin-off thunderstorms.

One funny thing that happened today occured early in my shift. Tony, the other weather intern, was looking at radar and noticed there was a tornado warning issued by the NWS. This warning was issued for Caribou, ME but Tony didn't immediately say that to Richard Ortner, the meteorologist on staff; this nearly caused Richard to go in to panic mode. All you could hear was Richard spinning in his chair and running over to the radar. You had to be there. We had big laugh afterwards.

I am looking forward to next week. Until then.

-Marcus W.

--4:04 pm MDT May 25, 2009--

Hi, my name is Marcus Walter and I am a new weather intern here at KMGH 24/7 News for the summer. Currently I am a graduate student pursuing a Master's Degree in Atmospheric Sciences at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY, which is far, far away from the Denver Metro area. After completion of my master's degree I plan to pursue a career in Broadcast Meteorology.

I am pretty excited to be here in Denver. Much of my time in Colorado has been spent in Boulder, where I've been a participant in the Significant Opportunities in Atmospheric Research and Sciences program for the past three summers. Overall I am in love with all that Colorado has to offer and could see myself living here.

This will be my first official TV internship and so far I think it was worth the wait. KMGH seems to be a great news station and I look forward to learning more about the business from all the meteorologists at the station, especially Cheif Meteorologist Mike Nelson and Meteorologist Richard Ortner.

-Marcus W.