MISSOULA — Short-Term Outlook: Extreme Heat, Smoke, and Dry Thunderstorms
Dry southwesterly flow will keep hot, smoky conditions locked in across the Northern Rockies for the next several days. Continue to monitor aur quality as wildfire smoke persists. Despite dense regional smoke, intense solar heating continues to push afternoon temperatures well above seasonal averages.
Isolated dry thunderstorms remain a threat for southwest Montana each afternoon. Atmospheric disturbances moving through Thursday afternoon into Friday morning will increase the risk of dry lightning and erratic outflow winds, even during overnight hours.
Weekend Transition: High Fire Danger Followed by Cooling
A broad Pacific trough will displace the dominant upper-level ridge this weekend. Saturday will see peak heat, with temperatures approaching 100°F in valley locations along and south of I-90.
A cold front will cross the region Saturday into Sunday, bringing widespread westerly winds of 10 to 25 mph with gusts up to 40 mph. Combined with low humidity, these winds will create critical fire weather conditions and dangerous lake chop. Although no significant rainfall is expected, temperatures will drop 10 to 20 degrees by Sunday and Monday, returning conditions to near-normal levels.
