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Goodbye Summer, and Hello Autumn

Posted at 6:02 AM, Sep 22, 2020
and last updated 2020-09-23 05:23:04-04

Today marks the autumnal equinox.

At 7:30 am, the center of the sun was directly over the equator, and that will essentially give us 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness. For the first day of Fall, the high temperatures are not so bad. The highs will range from the 70s and 80s and will get a little cooler the further northwest you go. A weak front will bring scattered showers and thunderstorms to Glacier, Flathead, and Pondera Counties. The system will leave a minimal impact and will be short-lived. Today most of the state will have partly cloudy skies. The recent showers from over the weekend have improved the air quality. Most of the air quality is now between Good and Moderate, but a southwesterly flow will bring smoke back into portions of southwest Montana.

Wednesday the state will have partly to mostly cloudy skies. A southwesterly flow will allow temperatures to warm back to the upper 70s and low 80s. Conditions are expected to remain quiet until a stronger system begins to move in on Thursday.

Thursday, a potent cold front will move in off the Pacific and bring showers, cooler temperatures, and strong wind. Showers will fall west of the Continental Divide and may spill into central Montana. The temperatures west of the Divide will stay in the 50s & 60s, central Montana temperatures will remain in the 70s, and eastern Montana highs will climb to the upper 80s. West winds will howl throughout Montana, but the strongest wind will blow off the northern Rocky Mountain Front. Elevated fire concerns will be likely as dry air continues to linger, which will cause the relative humidity to fall anywhere between 20-30% range.

Friday into the weekend will be cooler, wet at times, and Windy.

Next week a high-pressure system will allow temperatures to warm back to the 70s and keep the conditions dry.

Have a great day.

A.R.😊