WESTERN MT WEATHER PATTERN CHANGING

WESTERN MT WEATHER PATTERN CHANGING

By Robin O'Day

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Posted: Jun 26, 2010 5:54 PM
Updated: Jun 26, 2010 5:55 PM

MISSOULA - Meteorologists from the Northern Rocky Coordination Center in Missoula say that we are in a transition from a "El Nino" weather pattern to a "La Nina" weather pattern.

This shift can make for an aggressive fire season, but Meteorologist Mike Kreyenhagen says that's not the case for us in Western Montana just yet.

"Our research has shown that we have some fairly active fire seasons when we roll out of an El Nino winter and into a La Nina summer. The wild card this year was that this spring was very, very, very wet. And so that has in our mind, knocked down the significant fire potential danger though the month of July."

Kreyenhagen added that he expects the fire danger for the month of August and September to be "normal".

When asked about what kind of winter we may see this year, Kreyenhagen said that if you're a skier then you should definitely considering buying a pass this winter.

"La Nina winters tend to dump a lot of snow, a lot of rain at the end of October. Snow for the high country, hunters are happy, skiers are happy. That's kind of the shift we're expecting."

http://www.kaj18.com/news/western-mt-weather-pattern-changing/