A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY has been issued for East Glacier and northern sections of the Rocky Mountain Front through 9AM Friday
A FLOOD WATCH has been issued for Battle Creek near Chinook through early Sunday morning
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We will start off partly cloudy and warm throughout most of southwest and central Montana today, but a cold front will bring thunderstorms to the region this afternoon and last into the nighttime hours.
We could see storms fire ahead of the front as early as 1PM. A few of the storms today could be on the stronger side, with numerous lightning strikes, small hail, and graupel.
With the partly to mostly cloudy skies this morning, the sun will sufficiently heat the ground and energize our boundary or "surface" layer of the atmosphere and create Convective Available Potential Energy (CAPE). The sufficient CAPE, combined with the lift of the cold front, will allow the production of multiple thunderstorms. We do not have enough energy however to allow the buildup of severe thunderstorms. Gusty wind is expected in extreme southwest Montana near Butte, Bozeman, and Dillon.
Storms will stick around overnight until the early AM hours. There is a chance of an isolated shower or thunderstorm tomorrow for Helena and Great Falls. Temperatures will be in the 40s and 50s for west and central Montana.
Eastern portions of the state will still be under the influence of the upper-level ridging pattern, allowing temperatures to creep into the mid 70s in places like Glasgow, Jordan and Miles City. Breezy conditions will accompany the warmth
A low pressure system moves just south of the state on Friday and will drive widespread rain and snow through the PM hours and into Saturday. Models are still really struggling in determining where the will be positioned on over the weekend. This will heavily influence the amount of snowfall we receive. I will go out and say that most locations should expect to get some snow, but stay tuned over the next few days for estimated totals.
Drier and warmer conditions return to start out next work week.
Helena Temperature Records Today:
High: 76° (1992)
Low: 7° (1880)
AVG: 53/30
Great Falls Temperature Records Today:
High: 75° (1933)
Low: -2° (2002)
AVG: 50/28
Remember, if thunder roars, stay indoors!
Joey Biancone
Meteorologist
Facebook: Meteorologist Joey Biancone
Instagram: joeybianconewx
