Extreme Temperatures
While most of the Front Range and eastern plains had a steady soaking rain overnight Sunday into Monday morning, many higher peaks of the state above 11,000 to 12,000 feet were treated to early September snow.
Pikes Peak woke up with measurable snow to start the week. While the peak can see snow during the Summer months at over 14,000 feet, most of those storms only provide a dusting. Workers had to do a little early season shoveling.
At this time the exact snowfall total from the monstrous 24-hour storm cycle at the Argentinian ski area has yet to be confirmed because it's been too deep for staff to efficiently walk outside and measure it. What is known with precision, however, is that the avalanche danger in Las Leñas right now is extreme, with the probability of a slide considered to be certain.
The South Africa Weather Service issued a yellow level 1 alert for damaging wind between Plettenberg Bay and Maputo and along the KwaZulu-Natal coastline.
The preliminary monthly average for August 2023 at Vostok Station has come in at -71.2C (-96.2F).
This makes for the coldest August since 2002, -71.5C (-96.7F), and also the coldest month since July 2016, -71.8C (-97.2F).
Vostok's chill has now spilled into September, too.
On Friday, Sept 1 an anomalous minimum of -77.9C (108.2F) was reached.
Note, this reading likely won't represent the true daily minimum. At 12Z the temperature was -77.8C (chart below). It was almost certainly colder earlier but due to a quirk of the Russian algorithm, extremes are only documented during the second half of the day.

lle dell'Agnello Alpine pass between Italy and France on Monday as the area was hit by unexpected summer snowfall.
Snow has come exceptionally early to one part of the Alps this year after temperatures in the area reportedly plunged by around 20 degrees within just 48 hours.
A cold air front moving in from northern Europe brought the heatwave to an abrupt end in northern Italy over the weekend, and authorities issued weather warnings as the sudden change in temperature brought with it heavy rainfall, storms, flash floods, and even mini tornadoes.
In the Alpine resort town of Sestriere, residents and holidaymakers woke up to several centimetres of snow on Monday morning - just days after the area had recorded normal summer temperatures.
The dumped snow fell overnight across the Matterhorn Ski Paradise area, a unique cross-border ski resort encompassing Zermatt in Switzerland and Cervinia in Italy. Webcam footage showed accumulations of 5-10 cm (2-4 inches) of snow at the summit and ski area base, turning the whole area into a beautiful white.
While summer snowfalls do occasionally happen in the Alps, it's still unusual in August and exciting to get snow at that time of year.
The forecast may have materialized the most at Las Leñas Resort in Argentina when it reported over 11 feet of new snow at mid-mountain over the last four days. You can tell they were excited when they posted on their Instagram page earlier this week with the caption "This is how we are today August 22. It's the moment!"
Yesterday evening, Zugspitze ski area, a German resort located on the flanks of the nation's highest mountain -- also called Zugspitze -- shared on Facebook that it'd received roughly four inches at its summit area.
While I wouldn't count on Zugspitze opening to skiers any time soon, the photos the resort posted are worth checking out and indicate that ski season, with a bit of luck, is just around the corner.
The abrupt drop in temperatures, aided by the abundant rainfall, brought snow to the Dolomites.
This morning, Saturday 5 August, the completely whitewashed peak of the Civetta is clearly visible from the Val di Zoldo. An intense snowfall that has led many to think: "Are we on August 5th or December 5th?".
Comment: A french report of the snowfall on the 4th of August in the Pyrenees include these images: