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Valley reaches record highs " but not enough to fry egg

Scott Condon
Aspen Correspondent
Post Independent Photo/Kara K. PearsonChally Korn, 6, right, and Tiffany Rodgers, 11, let out a cry as a stream of cold water squirts them at the John M. Fleet pool Friday afternoon in Carbondale. The weather report calls for temperatures in the 90s through July 22.
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Remember the old saying “It’s hot enough to fry an egg on the pavement?”

Well, we tried it Friday. It wasn’t.

After several days of sweltering temperatures, Aspen got a reprieve Friday when the mercury dropped back to an average level.



The temperature topped out at 86 degrees after hitting 91 the previous two days and 89 on July 12.

“They are unseasonably warm for you,” said Mark Heuer, a meteorologist for DayWeather Inc., the service The Aspen Times uses for its weather page. “This is about as hot as it gets for Aspen.”



The 91-degree temperature Thursday tied a 27-year-old record and came close to matching the highest temperature in Aspen since 1948, according to the federal Western Regional Climate Center. The all-time recorded high was 93 degrees on June 23, 1954.

Given the hot weather, the Times recruited Anthony Compagni, the head chef at Gusto, to see if we could fry an egg. He was doubtful from the beginning because he used to live in Arizona, where it’s really hot.

It takes a temperature of about 140 degrees to make an egg coagulate, Compagni said. He estimated that the parking space on Main Street for the experiment reached only about 100 degrees.

Compagni suggested trying a black asphalt lot across the street. Over there he estimated the temperature at 120.

The experiment gave some passers-by a chuckle, except for one gentleman who looked at the experiment in disgust.

Aspen’s temperature has exceeded 80 degrees for 11 straight days. Average highs are typically in the upper 70s and lower 80s. Mid-80s to low-90s have been common since July 5. Only the last few days could be considered unseasonable, Heuer said.

It’s been dry as well as hot lately. Only 0.02 inches of rain had fallen in July as of 5 p.m. Friday. For the year the town has recorded only 7.50 inches of precipitation. Ten inches is average.

The monsoonal moisture, which frequently brings afternoon showers, may pick up shortly, according to Heuer. Temperatures are also expected to drop by about five degrees at the end of the weekend and the beginning of next week. High 80s and low 90s will return before the week is out, he said.

But they probably won’t be hot enough to fry an egg on the pavement.


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