A Winter Weather Advisory is in effect for central Montana until 5am Friday. A Winter Weather Advisory is also in effect for northeastern Montana from 11pm Thursday until 8pm Friday. A coating to 3 inches of snow accumulation is expected in the lower elevations, and 2 to 6 inches of snow accumulation is expected in the higher elevations. There are also going to be areas of blowing/drifting snow and reduced visibility around.
A Wind Chill Advisory is in effect for the Hi-Line from 10pm Thursday until 5am Saturday and for the rest of central Montana from 12am until 12pm Friday. Wind chills as low as 35 below zero are possible. With wind chills this low, that means frostbite can occur on exposed skin in as little as 10 minutes.
A strong cold front is going to bring widespread light to moderate snow to our area later this evening and tonight. Snow squalls (brief periods of heavy snow, strong winds, and whiteout conditions) are also possible tonight. In the lower elevations, a coating to 3 inches of snow accumulation is expected. In the higher elevations, 2 to 6 inches of snow accumulation is expected.
Slippery road conditions are also expected tonight, so please be careful when driving and give yourself plenty of extra time to get to where you need to go. There are also going to be some areas of blowing and drifting snow around tonight.
This strong cold front is also going to bring some arctic air into our area as lows tonight are going to be in the single digits above and below zero. Gusty winds are also expected tonight, and this wind is going to make it feel nasty outside as wind chills may get as low as 35 below zero.
For Friday, we are going to have decreasing clouds, resulting in lots of sunshine for the late morning and afternoon hours. There is also going to be some snow around tomorrow morning in eastern Montana, but dry conditions are expected in central Montana. It is also going to be frigid tomorrow as highs are only going to be in the single digits and teens, and a few spots along the Hi-Line may not even get above 0 degrees. Gusty winds are also expected tomorrow morning in east-central and eastern Montana, and wind chills may get as low as 35 below zero.
Breezy/windy conditions and warmer temperatures are then expected on Saturday as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 10 and 30 mph and high temperatures are going to be in the 20s and 30s. We are also going to have mostly cloudy skies on Saturday with a few scattered snow and rain showers around, generally in the mountains.
A cold front is then going to bring another round of light to moderate snow to our area for the second half of Sunday, Sunday night, and Monday. This cold front is also going to cool our temperatures down as highs on Sunday are going to be in the 30s and low 40s, while highs on Monday are only going to be in the teens and 20s. It is also going to be a bit breezy on Sunday, especially during the morning, as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 10 and 20 mph.
There are then going to be some scattered snow showers around on Tuesday in north-central Montana as a warm front passes through our area. We are then going to have a chance to see some more snow showers on Wednesday and Thursday as we continue to remain in an unsettled weather pattern. We are also going to have partly to mostly cloudy skies on these three days. It is also going to be chilly on these three days as highs are going to be in the 20s and 30s. Breezy conditions are also expected on Wednesday as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 10 and 20 mph.
