WEATHER DISCUSSION: It was a mild and warm day for most areas, with high temperatures reaching into the 70’s and the 80’s for the state. Expect partly cloudy skies tonight with low temperatures into the 40’s and the 50’s and winds on the lighter side, around 5 to 10 mph.
Scattered showers and thunderstorms redeveloped this afternoon, mainly over the elevated terrain of the Little Belt and Snowy mountain ranges. Any thunderstorms today near Great Falls will be rather weak until they move further east into the Glasgow and/or Billings forecast areas. Severe thunderstorm warnings were in effect for rural south Fergus county and thunderstorm watches in effect for Southern and Southeastern portions of the state. Expect 60 mph winds and quarter size hail with severe thunderstorms tonight.
More of the same is expected for Sunday, but a nicely timed shortwave will increase coverage and intensity of storms with some westward expansion to include most Central/North Central and Southwestern locations. Additional rounds of showers and storms can be expected for Monday and Tuesday with the continuation of the southwesterly flow aloft, but there isn`t as much of a signal for stronger activity at this time.
High temperatures Sunday remain in the 70’s and the 80’s with partly cloudy skies, afternoon/evening chances of showers and thunderstorms, and wind gusts up to 20 mph.
The shower and thunderstorm activity looks to slow down a bit for the second half of the workweek with opportunities for spotty precipitation, breezy to windy conditions and less moisture availability. High temperatures will stay in the 70’s for the first half and warm back into the 80’s towards the second half before cooler temperatures start up next weekend with more precipitation chances.
