BOZEMAN – Wildfire smoke continues to be the biggest hazard again today for SW Montana with air quality ratings in the moderate to unhealthy range. A west to SW flow aloft will continue to pave the way for this wildfire smoke to drift over SW Montana for the rest of the week.
Air Quality Alerts have been extended again another 24 hours into Thursday morning and most likely we will continue to see alerts for the rest of the week.
There is a bit of good news in the short-term forecast. Monsoonal moisture is lifting into the Idaho and southern Montana Wednesday afternoon. This should produce scattered thunderstorms locally both Wednesday afternoon and evening and again Thursday afternoon and evening.
The thunderstorms will be scattered to isolated which means some of us will see moderate to heavy rainfall but most of us will not with type of a pattern. Thunderstorms will also produce lightning and that is a cause for concern in producing new wildfire starts.
Temperatures will be slightly cooler with afternoon thunderstorm activity for several days but remain near to slightly above normal.
