From December through February, meteorologists say La Niña, which is characterized by cooler-than-normal equatorial pacific waters and strong pacific trade winds (and also translates to “little girl” in Spanish), is expected while conditions will likely “neutralize” for the second half of the winter season in 2026.
La Niña typically brings high pressure over the central northern pacific as the polar jet stream stretches up and over, scooping up the arctic air and pulling it down into the Northern Rockies. Meanwhile, that same Pacific jet stream streaks across the Pacific, picking up moisture and – alas – bringing above-average precipitation.
The most recent La Niña occurred from 2020 to early 2023 when a “triple-dip” persisted for three successive years.
“No two La Niñas are the same,” NWS meteorologist Brian Conlan said.
Northwest Montana is on tap to see more moisture this weekend as an atmospheric river is forecast to flow over the region starting on Saturday and lasting through Monday, which could bring up to 2 feet of snow at high elevations, including in Glacier National Park.
“We are looking at a strong pacific jet stream and a cold-core trough up here,” Colan said. “That eventually comes into the Northern Rockies, and we are expecting heavy precipitation and heavy snow.”
While precipitation is expected to fall in the form of rain at low elevations, Essex could see up to 3 inches of snow while Whitefish Mountain Resort could see a handful of inches by Sunday night. Snow levels are forecast to drop to 3,000 feet by Tuesday.
Over the next few weeks, Conlan says the Pacific jet stream will “undulate between north and south,” which could bring fluctuating temperatures.
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