WEATHER DISCUSSION: It was another cold day for North Central Montana with high temperatures below zero in the single digits in northern areas and in the single digits for central areas. Expect a cloudy sky tonight with chances of light snow in Central and western portions of the area tonight. Northeastern portions will most likely be on the drier side, missing the snow. Low temperatures will range from below zero to single digits, with warmer temperatures in the SW portion of the state. A Cold Weather Advisory will be in effect tonight through the afternoon on Sunday with wind chills as low as -35 below.
Tomorrow will be the first of a couple of bitterly cold temperatures in North Central MT. High temperatures will remain in single digits with wind chills dropping the temperatures below zero. For this reason, the Cold Weather Advisory will turn into an Extreme Cold Warning that will last from Sunday evening through Wednesday morning. Wind chills could be as cold as -50 below zero.
Disturbances aloft will have light snow falling this evening across North-Central MT before the main event arrives early Sunday morning. A broad upper-level trough moves onshore to the Western U.S. Sunday morning. Widespread snow will fall consistently through Tuesday morning (though, some areas in Northeastern Hill and Blaine Counties may get little to snow accumulations). Moderate to heavy banding of snow is expected extending from the Northern Rocky Mountain Front to the Central MT mountains. The expected snow accumulations will prompt Winter Weather Advisories to be in effect from Sunday through Monday/Tuesday.
Light snow lingers into Tuesday morning winding down by the afternoon. Another disturbance will bring another round of light snow Thursday to areas mainly along the Divide, Southwest, and Central MT. Towards the end of the week, breezy chinook winds which should help warm temperatures back up to more mild.
