BILLINGS — The weather will become much more active on Tuesday and much windier and wetter by Wednesday. All of this will leave us feeling more like fall weather by the weekend.
A strong upper low making its way through Nevada and Idaho will move from southwest Montana to the northeastern corner of the state Tuesday and Wednesday.
For central and western Montana, this could mean pockets of very heavy rain. For eastern Montana, it could mean the potential for severe storms on Tuesday and a significant cool down on Wednesday.
Overnight temperatures will be into the 40s and 50s from Billings to the west and 50s to 60s to the east. Tuesday afternoon highs will be in the 70s to low 80s from Billings to the west and south and 80s to low 90s east and north of Billings.
Clouds will increase through the afternoon and the potential for strong to severe storms exists, especially to the north and east of Billings, where the warmer temperatures will build in.
The biggest threats will be very strong wind gusts and hail. Pockets of heavy rain are also possible. Time for any severe storms will be from around 1 p.m. until 9 p.m.
The rain could be heavy at times across eastern Montana and northern Wyoming, especially to the east of Billings. Some areas could pick up one inch or more in total accumulation from Tuesday afternoon through Thursday morning.
High temperatures on Wednesday will be mainly in the 50s and 60s, with wet weather and periods of wind that could gust 45 mph at times.
What's the low lifts out of the region on Thursday? We'll be into a period of slightly cooler-than-average weather with hit-and-miss showers. Highs will be mainly in the 60s to low 70s through the weekend.
