Here's What This Winter May Be Like in Montana According to NOAA

The Winter 2021 Weather Outlook has been released from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and it looks to be a colder and wetter than average season headed our way.

According to the NOAA press release, we will have consecutive winters with La Nina climate conditions causing "below-normal temperatures along portions of the northern tier of the U.S."

Winter 2021 U.S. Temperature Outlook maps show a 33 to 40 percent probability of below-normal temperatures in Yellowstone County from December 2021 through February 2022. Most of northern Montana has a 40 to 50 percent chance of below-normal temperatures, according to the outlook map.

Consistent with La Nina climate conditions, warmer-than-average conditions are expected this winter across the south and most of the eastern U.S.

The U.S. Winter Outlook for precipitation is predicting an above-normal chance for precipitation across most of Montana, with Billings in the 33 to 40 percent chance of above-normal precipitation this winter.

The Pacific Northwest, northern Rockies, Great Lakes and parts of the Ohio Valley and western Alaska have the greatest chances for wetter-than-average conditions.

Drier-than-average conditions are favored in south-central Alaska, southern California, the Southwest, and the Southeast.

Drought conditions are expected to improve in most of Montana through February 2022, according to the NOAA forecast map. Most of the northern plains will continue to have drought conditions worsening, but the winter forecast predicts "drought improvement" for the Pacific Northwest, northern California, the upper Midwest and Hawaii.

NOAA’s seasonal outlooks provide the likelihood that temperatures and total precipitation amounts will be above-, near- or below-average, and how drought conditions are anticipated to change in the months ahead. The outlook does not project seasonal snowfall accumulations as snow forecasts are generally not predictable more than a week in advance. -National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

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