AN AIR QUALITY ALERT is in effect for portions of western and southwestern Montana until at least 9am Saturday.
It was chilly last night as lows were in the mid to upper 30s and low to mid 40s in most locations! Newlan Creek, which is 13 miles north of White Sulphur Springs, had a low temperature of 25° this morning, and was the coldest spot in Montana and the contiguous U.S.! It will be cool again tonight, but not quite as chilly as it was last night, as lows are going to be in the upper 30s and low to mid 40s. We are also going to have clear skies and dry conditions tonight.
We had better air quality today, but it was still pretty hazy, especially around Helena and in western portions of north-central Montana. For tonight and tomorrow, it will continue to remain hazy, with the thickest haze around Helena and in western portions of north-central Montana and less haze in eastern portions of north-central Montana. As we go through tomorrow, the haze will increase and become thicker along and just east of the Continental Divide, including around Helena.
This haze/smoke will continue to gradually increase from southwest to northeast as we go through tomorrow night and into Sunday. As the smoke increases, we will see the visibility drop and the air quality may become unhealthy for sensitive groups at times. The haze/smoke will likely stick around through at least the beginning of next week. This smoke is coming from fires burning throughout the Pacific Northwest, including here in Montana.
If you are sensitive to smoke in the atmosphere, make sure you limit your time outdoors this weekend, especially on Sunday, as health impacts (irritated eyes, nose, and throat; coughing; headaches) can occur quickly.
FULL WEEKEND FORECAST:
Tomorrow, we are going to have partly to mostly sunny skies and dry conditions around Helena and mostly sunny skies and dry conditions in north-central Montana. It is also going to be warmer tomorrow than it was today as highs are going to be in the mid to upper 70s and low to mid 80s.
We are then going to have partly to mostly cloudy skies on Sunday with a few scattered showers and thunderstorms around, generally during the afternoon and evening. It will also continue to be warm on Sunday as highs are going to be in the upper 70s and low to mid 80s. There will also be a bit of a breeze around on Sunday along the Divide and the Rocky Mountain Front as well as around the Cut Bank area as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 10 and 20 mph.
Precipitation chances will increase next week and the temperatures will gradually cool down as the week goes on as an upper-level ridge shifts eastward and as an upper-level trough approaches our area.
On Monday, we are going to have mostly sunny skies with just a few isolated showers and thunderstorms around. We are then going to have mostly cloudy skies on Tuesday with some scattered PM showers/storms around Helena and a few scattered PM showers/storms in north-central Montana, generally in the mountains and in locations west of a line from Havre to Lewistown. It is also going to be warm on these two days as highs are going to be in the upper 70s and low to mid 80s in most locations.
There are then going to be some scattered showers and thunderstorms around from later Wednesday through Thursday as a stronger disturbance passes through our area. We are also going to have partly to mostly cloudy skies and cooler temperatures on these two days as highs are going to be in the 70s and low 80s in most locations.
On Friday, we are going to have partly to mostly sunny skies with a few isolated showers and thunderstorms around. Highs on Friday will be in the 70s and upper 60s.
