202
FXUS65 KGGW 292045
AFDGGW
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GLASGOW MT
145 PM MST THU JAN 29 2026
DISCUSSION
KEY MESSAGES:
- OCCASIONAL LIGHT SNOW IS EXPECTED TODAY AND TONIGHT MAINLY NEAR
AND EAST OF MT HIGHWAY 24.
- DAILY HIGH AND LOW TEMPERATURES WILL ONLY CHANGE A LITTLE
THROUGH FRIDAY THEN WARM UP ABOVE FREEZING SATURDAY AFTERNOON,
BEHIND A WARM FRONT.
- A WINTRY MIX OF LIGHT SNOW, FREEZING RAIN, AND LIGHT RAIN IS
EXPECTED SATURDAY MORNING. SOME AREAS COULD SEE ICE
ACCUMULATION.
WEATHER PATTERN OVERVIEW:
THANKS TO A PERSISTENT STATIONARY FRONT, THE ARCTIC OR MODIFIED
ARCTIC AIR WILL HANG ON OVER OUR NE FORECAST ZONES THROUGH FRIDAY.
EVEN TODAY, THIS REMAINS THE FOCUS FOR LOW CLOUDS AND SCATTERED
LIGHT SNOWFALL FROM MT HIGHWAY 24 TO THE ND BORDER. THIS LIGHT
SNOW ACTIVITY WILL CONTINUE THIS EVENING AND TONIGHT, THEN
DIMINISH AWAY TO FLURRIES TOWARD THE SE OVERNIGHT TONIGHT.
AN EMBEDDED SHORTWAVE RIDGE ON FRIDAY WILL ALLOW FOR A MAINLY DRY
DAY.
LATE FRIDAY NIGHT AND THROUGH SATURDAY, THE UPPER RIDGE PUSHES
EAST, BRINGING WARMER AIR INTO THE AREA, BUT NOT BEFORE ANOTHER
EMBEDDED DISTURBANCE LEADS THE WAY WITH A WINTRY MIX OF SNOW,
FREEZING RAIN, AND RAIN TO MOST OF NE MONTANA. THE SET-UP OF WARM
AIR ALOFT AND BELOW-FREEZING SURFACE TEMPERATURES IS EXPECTED TO
FAVOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF A FEW HUNDREDTHS OF AN INCH OF ICE
ACCUMULATION. NEXT SHIFT WILL NEED TO MONITOR THE DATA AND OUR
INCREASING CONFIDENCE LEVELS, WHICH MAY REQUIRE A WINTER WEATHER
ADVISORY FOR ICE ACCUMULATION. STAY TUNED.
ONCE THIS SYSTEM MOVES TO THE EAST LATER ON SATURDAY, ABOVE
NORMAL TEMPERATURES ARE EXPECTED FOR SEVERAL DAYS.
FORECAST CONFIDENCE & DEVIATIONS:
DEVIATED FROM THE GIVEN NBM FOR THE FIRST 24-HOUR PERIOD TO MORE
ACCURATELY REPRESENT POPS AND WINDS, OTHERWISE GENERALLY WENT
WITH THE NBM THROUGH THE REMAINDER OF THE FORECAST.
AVIATION
UPDATED: 2044Z, THURSDAY AFTERNOON JAN 29
FLIGHT CATEGORY: BORDERLINE MVFR/IFR CONDITIONS CONTINUING TODAY
AND TONIGHT. BRIEF LIFR CONDITIONS ARE POSSIBLE IN THE HEAVIER
SNOWBANDS.
DISCUSSION: THE STATIONARY FRONT WILL FOCUS THE PERSISTENCE OF LOW
CLOUDS AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF SCATTERED AND ORGANIZED SNOWFALL
THROUGH THE FIRST HALF OF THIS TAF CYCLE. THE NEXT STORM SYSTEM,
EVEN THOUGH IT IS BEYOND THIS TAF CYCLE, IS EXPECTED TO BRING
FREEZING RAIN AND ICE ACCUMULATION TO OUR NE MT TAF SITES ON
SATURDAY. STAY TUNED.
WINDS: LIGHT AND VARIABLE TODAY, THEN FROM THE ESE AROUND 10 TO 15
KNOTS LATER ON FRIDAY. A SUDDEN SHIFT IN THE WIND ON SATURDAY
WILL BRING MUCH WARMER TEMPERATURES, BUT ALSO WEST WINDS UP TO 25
KTS.
GGW WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES
NONE.
WEATHER.GOV/GLASGOW
CLICK HERE TO GO TO PREVIOUS BULLETINS.
Main Text Page