Malta (35 mi S), Montana climate: Climate normals at a NOAA weather station
Malta (35 mi S)'s normal year runs from 6°F January nights to 86°F July afternoons, with 12.9 inches of precipitation and 32 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 6.4°C, January lows of −15°C, July highs of 30°C, 329 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationMalta (35 mi S)
- Station IDUSC00245340
- Location47.84°N 107.96°W
- Elevation2,615 ft (797 m)
On October 14, the normal high in Malta (35 mi S) is 59°F and the normal low 31°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 15%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Malta (35 mi S).
- Jan 29° 6°
- Feb 33° 9°
- Mar 44° 19°
- Apr 56° 31°
- May 66° 40°
- Jun 75° 50°
- Jul 86° 55°
- Aug 85° 53°
- Sep 74° 43°
- Oct 58° 30°
- Nov 43° 18°
- Dec 32° 9°
Each month: normal high (large) and low, °F. Fill: the month's normal mean, colder blue to hotter red.
What is the weather like at Malta (35 mi S) each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 86°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 6°F. The most precipitation falls in June (2.70 in), the least in December (0.23 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 29°F | 6°F | 17.5°F | 0.27 | 6.6 | 3 | <1 | 30 | 8 h 50 min |
| February | 33°F | 9°F | 21.1°F | 0.24 | 6.4 | 3 | <1 | 27 | 10 h 10 min |
| March | 44°F | 19°F | 31.6°F | 0.50 | 4.1 | 4 | <1 | 28 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 56°F | 31°F | 43.4°F | 1.07 | 2.7 | 6 | <1 | 19 | 13 h 40 min |
| May | 66°F | 40°F | 53.1°F | 2.42 | 0.6 | 9 | 1 | 6 | 15 h 10 min |
| June | 75°F | 50°F | 62.6°F | 2.70 | 0.0 | 10 | 3 | <1 | 16 h |
| July | 86°F | 55°F | 70.3°F | 1.87 | 0.0 | 8 | 12 | <1 | 15 h 40 min |
| August | 85°F | 53°F | 69.1°F | 1.21 | 0.0 | 5 | 13 | <1 | 14 h 20 min |
| September | 74°F | 43°F | 58.1°F | 1.09 | 0.0 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 12 h 40 min |
| October | 58°F | 30°F | 44.2°F | 0.98 | 1.4 | 5 | <1 | 18 | 11 h |
| November | 43°F | 18°F | 30.5°F | 0.37 | 4.8 | 3 | <1 | 27 | 9 h 20 min |
| December | 32°F | 9°F | 20.6°F | 0.23 | 5.6 | 3 | <1 | 31 | 8 h 30 min |
| Year (annual) | 57°F | 30°F | 43.5°F | 12.95 | 32.2 | 63 | 32 | 190 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −2°C | −15°C | −8.1°C | 7 mm | 17 cm |
| February | 0°C | −13°C | −6.1°C | 6 mm | 16 cm |
| March | 7°C | −7°C | −0.2°C | 13 mm | 10 cm |
| April | 14°C | −1°C | 6.3°C | 27 mm | 7 cm |
| May | 19°C | 4°C | 11.7°C | 61 mm | 2 cm |
| June | 24°C | 10°C | 17.0°C | 69 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 30°C | 13°C | 21.3°C | 47 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 30°C | 12°C | 20.6°C | 31 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 23°C | 6°C | 14.5°C | 28 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 14°C | −1°C | 6.8°C | 25 mm | 4 cm |
| November | 6°C | −8°C | −0.8°C | 9 mm | 12 cm |
| December | 0°C | −13°C | −6.3°C | 6 mm | 14 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00245340; annual normals. Wet days: 0.01 inch or more; 90°F days and freezing nights: NOAA's day counts. Daylight: sunrise to sunset on the 15th, computed from the latitude.
Which months are mildest at Malta (35 mi S)?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in May, June and September. Of those, September has the fewest days with rain (5).
That is a measurement, not a recommendation: it counts the months whose normal afternoon high sits between 65°F and 85°F, where a light layer is enough by day.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00245340.
When is the last frost at Malta (35 mi S)?
In Malta (35 mi S), the last spring frost (32°F) comes after May 16 in half of years and after May 29 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before September 23 in half of years and before September 10 in one year in ten.
Frost-free in half of yearsFrost in 1 to 9 years out of 10Frost most years
- Last spring frost, half of years after
- May 161 year in 10 after May 29; 9 in 10 after May 4
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- September 231 year in 10 before September 10; 9 in 10 before October 4
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 128 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 147 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after May 5 in half of springs and before September 30 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Malta (35 mi S) in zone 4a in ZIP code 59538, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, the station is in zone 3b: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −33°F (16 complete years); the map interpolates between stations and terrain, so the station and the ZIP area can differ by half a zone.
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Montana · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00245340; USDA 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map, ZIP listings: PRISM Group, Oregon State University, https://prism.oregonstate.edu, accessed October 8, 2026; the station zone: ACIS daily lows, 1991-2020. A 10% date means one year in ten has a frost after it in spring or before it in autumn.
How hot and how cold does it get at Malta (35 mi S)?
In a normal year in Malta (35 mi S), 32 days a year reach 90°F (4 of them 100°F or more), 190 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 63 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 32a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- 4a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 190a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 53high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 63a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 13a normal year
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00245340.
How sunny is it at Malta (35 mi S)?
Over a year 77% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds at Malta (35 mi S), 4.0 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (88%) and December the cloudiest (64%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 68% | 1.4 |
| February | 72% | 2.4 |
| March | 70% | 3.6 |
| April | 72% | 4.9 |
| May | 74% | 6.0 |
| June | 79% | 6.7 |
| July | 88% | 7.1 |
| August | 86% | 5.9 |
| September | 79% | 4.3 |
| October | 74% | 2.8 |
| November | 71% | 1.7 |
| December | 64% | 1.1 |
Source: NASA POWER solar climatology, 2001-2020 (CERES SYN1deg). Satellite-based, for the 1-degree cell (about 100 km across) around the station, so it describes the area rather than the airport.
How many heating and cooling degree days does Malta (35 mi S) record?
A normal year at Malta (35 mi S) brings 8,255 heating degree days, 54% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 457 cooling degree days, 50% fewer than the median (908). Eight months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 2,140 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,472 | 0 |
| February | 1,231 | 0 |
| March | 1,034 | 0 |
| April | 647 | 0 |
| May | 378 | 8 |
| June | 125 | 54 |
| July | 27 | 191 |
| August | 44 | 171 |
| September | 237 | 32 |
| October | 648 | 1 |
| November | 1,036 | 0 |
| December | 1,376 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 8,255 | 457 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00245340. A degree day is one degree of a day's mean temperature below 65°F (heating) or above it (cooling); utilities use them to estimate energy use.
Have recent years at Malta (35 mi S) been warmer than normal?
2025 averaged 45.8°F, 2.3°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 43.5°F. 3 of the 3 complete years since 2023 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 45.4°F | +1.9°F | 13.89 | 30.7 |
| 2024 | 46.0°F | +2.5°F | 12.17 | 29.9 |
| 2025 | 45.8°F | +2.3°F | 15.55 | 31.3 |
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USC00245340. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Malta (35 mi S)'s climate compare?
Malta (35 mi S) is warmer than 56 of the 141 places with their own NOAA record in Montana, and wetter than 30. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 43.5°F is warmer than 14%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Malta (35 mi S) is BSk: cold semi-arid steppe. What the classes mean.
Places with the most similar year elsewhere
Measured month by month on the normal high, low and precipitation, among places of 20,000 or more people in other states:
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals for every station PlainClimate covers. Similarity: the root-mean-square difference of the 36 monthly figures, precipitation weighted so an inch counts like 6°F.
Questions about Malta (35 mi S)'s climate
What is the coldest month at Malta (35 mi S)?
January, with a normal high of 29°F and a normal low of 6°F. The warmest is July (86°F by day, 55°F at night).
Does it snow at Malta (35 mi S)?
Yes: 32 inches in a normal year, falling on 18 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in January (6.6 inches).
What is the rainiest month at Malta (35 mi S)?
June, with 2.70 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is December with 0.23 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Malta (35 mi S) in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Malta (35 mi S) in zone 4a in ZIP code 59538, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at the station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −33°F (16 years, 1991-2020): zone 3b.
How late can frost come at Malta (35 mi S)?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after May 16; in one year in ten it comes after May 29. Waiting until May 29 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Montana climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Content (4 mi NNE), MT26 miles from this station, 42.4°F a year
- Zortman, MT27 miles from this station, 43.2°F a year
- Malta, MT36 miles from this station, 44.9°F a year
- Sand Creek, MT40 miles from this station, 44.8°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made