A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY is in effect for portions of southwestern Montana and the Rocky Mountain Front until 11pm Tuesday and for portions of central and north-central Montana from 11pm Monday/5am Tuesday until 5am Wednesday.
A warm front brought warmer air into the state today, so it felt great outside, as in some areas it was nearly 40° warmer today than it was yesterday! No surprise though, this warmer air was accompanied by some wind as it was windy throughout the day today along the Rocky Mountain Front and it has been breezy today across the plains.
Here is the detailed forecast:
A disturbance will bring another round of accumulating snow to our area over the next day and a half. Tonight, there are going to be some scattered snow showers around before midnight, generally in central Montana and along the Rocky Mountain Front, and there are going to be scattered areas of snow around after midnight. Tomorrow will be a snowy day in central Montana and in southern portions of north-central Montana, as off-and-on snow is expected throughout the day. Elsewhere in north-central Montana, there will be some scattered snow showers around tomorrow, especially during the morning. The snow showers will then gradually taper off as we go through tomorrow night.
The mountains in central Montana, including the Big Belts, Little Belts, Highwoods, and Snowies, will pick up 6-12” of snow. The lower elevations in central Montana (Lewis and Clark County, Cascade County, Judith Basin County, and Fergus County) will receive a coating-4” of snow, although 3-8” of snow is expected in Lewistown, and between Belt and Geyser along Highway 87. Elsewhere, less than 1.5” of snow is expected, with northeastern Montana receiving little to no snow accumulation. Be prepared for slick/snow-covered roads when traveling tomorrow. The worst driving conditions tomorrow will be on Highway 87 between Great Falls and Lewistown as roads will be snow-covered and near-whiteout conditions will be possible at times.
Lows tonight are going to be in the 20s and low 30s (0s and 10s in northeastern Montana). Highs tomorrow are going to be in the upper 20s and low to mid 30s. It is also going to continue to be windy tonight along the Rocky Mountain Front and the Continental Divide as gusts up to 50 mph are possible. East of the Rocky Mountain Front, it will be breezy tonight as sustained winds of 10-25 mph are expected. For most, the wind will get weaker as the night goes on. This wind will also cause there to be areas of blowing and drifting snow. Tomorrow, it will be a bit breezy, especially east of I-15, as sustained winds of 10-20 mph are expected.
Wednesday will be a nice day as we are going to have partly to mostly sunny skies and mostly dry conditions. Along the Hi-Line east of I-15, it will be cold on Wednesday as highs are going to be in the mid to upper teens and low to mid 20s. Elsewhere, it will be a bit chilly on Wednesday as highs are going to be in the upper 20s and low to mid 30s. Gusty winds are also expected along the Rocky Mountain Front on Wednesday, so blowing and drifting snow will be an issue there.
There are then going to be some scattered snow and possibly rain showers around on Thursday as another disturbance impacts the state. Most of this precipitation will occur during the afternoon and evening. It is also going to be breezy and warmer on Thursday as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 10 and 25 mph and highs are going to be in the 30s in most locations. We are also going to have mostly cloudy skies.
Another disturbance will bring a mixture of rain and snow to north-central Montana later Friday into Saturday. The precipitation will develop Friday afternoon/evening and gradually taper off as we go through Saturday. We are also going to have mostly cloudy to overcast skies on these two days. More wind is expected on Friday as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 10 and 20 mph. It is also going to be cool on these two days as highs are going to be in the 30s and mid to upper 20s in most spots (teens along the eastern half of the Hi-Line on Saturday).
On Sunday, we are going to have mostly cloudy skies with a few rain and snow showers around, generally in the mountains. Partly to mostly cloudy skies and mostly dry conditions are then expected on Monday.
Sunday and Monday will feature warmer temperatures as highs are going to be in the mid to upper 30s and low to mid 40s. Gusty to strong winds are also expected on these two days as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 10 and 30 mph, and gusts over 50 mph are possible.
