THE FORECAST MODEL SHOWS MOST OF THE SNOW WILL STAY JAMMED UP IN WESTERN MONTANA. ONE LITTLE SHOT OF SNOW WILL MOVE THROUGH EASTERN MONTANA OVERNIGHT VERY RAPIDLY, like an Alberta clipper — It is a pretty blue sky over Billings Monday. However, it is just a little bit on the cool side. The early afternoon temperature in Billings is 35 degrees.
The wind is out of the west at 18 mph, giving us a windchill factor that feels like 24 degrees.
Around the rest of the state, the temperatures are mostly in the 20s in the far west, except for Kalispell, and 20s along the Hi-Line.
We see a lot of 30s in south-central Montana from Bozeman through Billings to Miles City.
We do have a Wind Advisory for the Beartooth foothills for winds gusting between 50 and 60 mph. That begins at 6 p.m. Monday and goes through noon Wednesday.
Plus, we also have a Winter Weather Advisory on the Rocky Mountains front, all the way down towards Judith Gap. This is for blowing and drifting snow, due to high winds.
We also have a High Wind Warning around Glacier National Park until 9 a.m. Tuesday for winds gusting to 60 miles per hour.
The Doppler radar and satellite imagery tells the story for Monday: it's pretty dry from one side of Montana to the other. But we do see the jet stream dropping down from Canada right over Glacier National Park and that's why it's so windy there.
The high-resolution forecast model shows most of the snow will stay jammed up in western Montana. One little shot of snow will move through eastern Montana overnight rapidly, like an Alberta clipper, and move into the Dakotas in the morning.
Back here the Billings area, we anticipate clear to partly cloudy skies over the next 72 hours and temperatures slowly warming up.
However, we will drop down into the 20s later Monday night and then slowly warm up overnight into the 30s Tuesday morning.
In fact, will warm up into the 40s for afternoon highs Tuesday through Friday and then pop up into the 50s over the weekend.
BILLINGS FORECAST
TONIGHT: Look for increasing clouds, breezy and cooler. Southwest winds 15 to 25 mph. Low 22 degrees.
TUESDAY: Mostly sunny, windy and warmer. Southwest winds 15 to 25 mph. High 41 degrees.
WEDNESDAY: Mostly sunny, windy and warmer. Southwest winds 15 to 25 mph high 44 degrees.
