BOZEMAN - A cool and dry NW flow aloft continues over Montana today. This is helping to produce better air quality and near to slightly cooler than normal temperatures.
There is a strong High-pressure ridge building over the Pacific NW allowing extreme heat to lift northward and triple digit heat is once again possible across Oregon and Washington state.
Some of this heat will push into far western Montana by the end of the week pushing max temperatures back up into the mid to upper 90s. SW Montana will also see a spike in temperatures this weekend but remain around 90 degrees or slightly warmer than normal.
There is a slight chance for isolated monsoonal thunderstorms to clip far southern Beaverhead and Madison counties on Friday. Right now, forecast models are showing just a slight chance for rumbles.
The Climate Prediction Center 6 to 10 day outlook from August 16th to the 20th has another pattern change coming to Montana. Next week there is a high probability of cooler than normal temperatures and slightly wetter than normal conditions.
Every Thursday we get an updated National drought monitor. It will be interesting to see if conditions hold firm or change slightly in response to the cool and wet weather pattern from Sunday into Monday. Look for updates on drought conditions tomorrow on KXLF and KBZK.
