MISSOULA — A few quick bursts of wet snow are possible Wednesday evening.
As these snowflakes hit the ground, they are likely to melt on impact due to warmer surface and air temperature Wednesday afternoon and evening.
Refreezing of slush is possible Wednesday night under heavier bands of snow, so be prepared for areas of black ice along the I-90, HWY 200, and HWY 93 corridor tomorrow morning.
Thursday will bring another round of moisture to our forecast.
Temperatures hover right around average (mid 30s) during the afternoon hours, so as this wave of energy approaches, moisture will be entering into a mild climate.
Rain and wintry mix will fall in valleys but passes will see snow totals climb throughout the afternoon.
There is a lot more moisture associated with this wave of energy moving our way.
This means we will likely see moisture lingering into those cooler hours of Thursday night into Friday morning, and valleys have a good chance of snow accumulation.
The highest snow totals will be found Thursday into Friday along Lookout Pass (8-12”), Lolo Pass (6-8”) and Lost Trail Pass (4-6”), and valleys along the Divide like Seeley/Swan Lake (6-8”).
The northwest corner will likely rack up the least amount of accumulation, but we could still see half an inch to an inch of snow.
The Flathead Valley will likely receive 1-2” Thursday night into Friday morning.
The Missoula Valley will see closer to 1-3” with areas to the east of Missoula along the I-90 corridor (Clinton, Drummond, Bearmouth, etc.) likely receiving slightly more totaling in around 4-6”.
The Bitterroot Valley will likely see 1-3”.
This Thursday through Friday snowstorm will be the first of a few we track in our extended forecast.
An arctic front moves in Friday afternoon through Saturday.
We will be breezy, snowy, and cold!
Temperature outlooks for the weekend are inconsistent between models at the moment, but we are confident in a cooler than average trend this weekend. It is just a matter of how much of a cool off we will get! We will track it all through the rest of the week.
