A HIGH WIND WARNING is in effect for a lot of central Montana until 6pm/9pm Thursday. Sustained wind speeds are going to be between 25 and 45 mph, and wind gusts are going to be between 60 and 75 mph at times.
A WINTER STORM WARNING is in effect for the Rocky Mountain Front from 12pm Thursday until 6am Friday, and for locations above 4000 feet in Cascade County, Judith Basin County, and Meagher County from 6pm Thursday until 12pm Friday. 3 to 6 inches of snow accumulation is expected above 4000 feet, while 6+ inches of snow accumulation is expected in the mountains.
A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY is in effect for Fergus County from 6pm Thursday until 12pm Friday. 2 to 4 inches of snow accumulation is expected above 4000 feet, while 4+ inches of snow accumulation is expected in the mountains.
We are going to have partly cloudy to mostly clear skies tonight with some scattered rain and mountain snow showers around as a cold front passes through our area. We are also going to have gusty to strong winds around tonight as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 10 and 30 mph, and wind gusts over 50 mph are going to be possible at times. It is also going to be chilly/cool tonight as lows are going to be in the mid to upper 30s and low to mid 40s in most locations.
For tomorrow, we are going to have increasing clouds throughout the day, and a large area of rain and snow will work its way southward through north-central Montana during the afternoon and central/south-central Montana during the evening as a storm system begins to work its way through our area. Also, snow levels will drop down to about 4000 feet by tomorrow evening. There are then going to be areas of rain and snow around Thursday night as this storm system continues to impact our area. Rain and snow showers are then expected on Friday as this storm system begins to depart our area.
In the mountains, 6 to 18 inches of snow accumulation is expected between Thursday and Friday. In the lower elevations, 0 to 6 inches of snow accumulation is expected over these two days, with the highest amounts occurring in the northerly upslope regions of the mountain ranges in central Montana.
It is also going to be chilly tomorrow and Friday as highs are only going to be in the mid to upper 40s and low to mid 50s in most locations. Strong winds are also expected on Thursday as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 20 and 40 mph, and wind gusts over 60 mph are expected at times. It is then going to be breezy on Friday as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 10 and 25 mph, and wind gusts up to 40 mph are going to be possible at times.
On Saturday, we are going to have partly to mostly cloudy skies with a few rain and snow showers around, especially in the mountains, as we continue to remain in an unsettled weather pattern. We are then going to have partly cloudy to mostly sunny skies on Sunday with a few rain and snow showers around, generally in the mountains of south-central Montana, as a disturbance passes by our area to the south. The temperatures are also going to warm up a little this weekend as highs on Saturday are going to be in the low to mid 50s, and highs on Sunday are going to be in the upper 50s and low 60s.
Partly cloudy skies and dry conditions are then expected on Monday. It is also going to be warmer on Monday than it is going to be this weekend as highs are going to be in the 60s.
On Tuesday, there are going to be some isolated rain showers and thunderstorms around, generally during the afternoon and evening, as a disturbance passes through our area. We are then going to have partly cloudy skies with a slight chance of rain showers and thunderstorms on Wednesday. It is also going to be breezy on these two days as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 10 and 20 mph. We are also going to have seasonable temperatures on these two days as highs are going to be in the mid to upper 60s and low 70s.
