It was a nice end to the work week as we had partly cloudy skies, mostly dry conditions, not much wind and warm temperatures today. This evening, we are going to have decreasing clouds with a few showers/storms along the eastern half of the Hi-Line. It is then going to be mainly clear and mainly dry tonight. There will also be a breeze around tonight along the northern half of the Rocky Mountain Front as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 10 and 20 mph, and it will be a little breezy in Valley County early on tonight as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 5 and 20 mph. It is also going to feel nice outside tonight as lows are going to be in the 50s in most locations.
Check out the weekend forecast:
There are going to be some scattered showers and thunderstorms around this weekend, mainly during the PM hours, as a couple disturbances impact the state. These showers/storms will be traveling towards the east-northeast, impacting central Montana mainly during the afternoon and evening and impacting north-central Montana mainly during the late afternoon, evening, and early nighttime hours. Central Montana, including the Helena and Lewistown areas, has the best chance to see precipitation this weekend, while the Hi-Line has the lowest chance to see precipitation this weekend.
A couple of the thunderstorms that develop this weekend, specifically within eastern Montana, may be severe with damaging winds (58+ mph) and/or large hail (1+” in diameter). Severe or not, gusty winds, brief heavy rain, small hail, and frequent lightning will be possible with all the thunderstorms that do develop, so please keep an eye to the sky when you are outdoors. New fire starts due to lightning strikes are also possible this weekend.
Although there will be some showers and thunderstorms around this weekend, a majority of the weekend will be dry, and not everyone will see this precipitation, so there is no need to cancel any outdoor plans that you may have. We are also going to have partly to mostly sunny skies this weekend, with the cloud cover increasing as the day goes on. Tomorrow will be the sunnier day of the weekend.
It is also going to be very warm this weekend as highs are going to be in the mid to upper 80s and low to mid 90s tomorrow, and the mid to upper 70s, 80s, and low 90s on Sunday, with the coolest temperatures on Sunday around Helena and along the Rocky Mountain Front. It will also be breezy along the Divide/the Rocky Mountain Front and out to I-15 tomorrow as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 10 and 25 mph. Elsewhere, there will just be a little breeze around tomorrow as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 5 and 20 mph. Little to no wind is then expected on Sunday, although it will continue to be a bit breezy along the Rocky Mountain Front.
There is also going to be some haze around this weekend due to smoke from local and regional wildfires. The visibility will be reduced some from this smoke, but the air quality won’t be impacted much as most locations in central and north-central Montana should continue to have “good” or “moderate” air quality.
Another disturbance will impact Montana on Monday producing some isolated showers and thunderstorms during the afternoon and evening, mainly in the mountains and in locations east of I-15. We are also going to have mostly sunny skies on Monday. Lots of sunshine and dry conditions are then expected for the rest of next week as an upper-level ridge is going to be in control of our weather. It is also going to be hot for the beginning of next week as highs are going to be in the mid to upper 80s and low to mid 90s Monday through Wednesday, with Tuesday being the hottest day. It will then be warm, but slightly cooler for the end of next week as highs are going to be in the 80s.
