BILLINGS — All week it appeared a huge and clearly-defined swath of central and eastern Montana would get some impressive snow, and that's how it played out. The further south and west you were the warmer and drier your weather was. Northeastern Montana will get most of the remaining snow and bitter cold through Saturday morning with Winter Storm Warnings and Winter Weather Advisories in effect.
A few snow showers will linger through Saturday morning, but we can expect a rapid shift to our weather pattern this weekend and much of next week. After some morning clouds we'll have afternoon sun on Saturday, but temperatures will still be colder than average. The bigger shift begins Sunday through Wednesday as the jetstream stays over us.
A big ridge of high pressure will be in place over the southwestern U.S. much of next week, and we'll be on the northern edge of that. We can expect rapid warming back into the 40s and 50s beginning Sunday and lasting through the week. We'll also have a lot of gusty wind and the melting of heavy snow, so stay vigilant for rising water and ponding.
