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How often do we hit 100 degrees in Denver? A look at heat history in Colorado

As Denver goes under a heat advisory for triple-digit temperatures, how often does the Mile High City reach the century mark? We dive into the weather records.

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By: Jeff Anastasio

As Denver goes under a heat advisory for triple-digit temperatures, how often does the Mile High City reach the century mark? We dive into the weather records.

How often do we hit 100 degrees in Denver? A look at heat history in Colorado

DENVER – The start of summer will sizzle across the Denver metro on Friday through this weekend as scorching heat will likely bring back-to-back triple digit high temps and the chance to break a few weather records.

We'll officially start the summer solstice at 8:42 p.m. as the longest day of the year will bring nearly 15 hours of daylight.

Reaching 100° on back-to-back days doesn't happen that often in Denver, as Denver7 chief meteorologist Lisa Hidalgo explained.

“That's only happened 15 times since the late 1800s,” said Hidalgo.

If you’re curious how many times Denver has reached the century mark, According to data from the National Weather Service (NWS) in Boulder, it has happened 111 times since 1872.

The highest temperature ever recorded in Denver was 105 degrees, most recently in June 2018 and before that it happened twice during the heat wave of 2012.

“It was a hot year. That's when we saw the most triple-digit days ever,” added Hidalgo.

That year during the summer, Denver baked under 100-degree temperatures for 13 days. 2012 also brought the warmest summer in Denver with a mean temperature of 76.3 degrees.

The earliest day of the year Denver has ever reached 100 degrees was on June 11 both in 2022 and 2013. As for the latest date the Mile High City cooked under 100° was on September 5, 2020.

It’s likely that by Sunday, the weather stats will change to reflect Denver reaching the century mark 113 times, as the city is expected to reach afternoon highs into the 100s both Friday and Saturday.

The current record high temp for both Friday and Saturday is 99 degrees.

If you’re already over the scorching heat, Hidalgo said after a couple of days, relief is on the way.

“We're not going to see that heat linger too much into early next week. In fact, when you look at our 10-day forecast, we'll be under some cooler than average conditions,” said Hidalgo.