Rudyard (21 mi N), Montana climate: Climate normals at a NOAA weather station
Rudyard (21 mi N)'s normal year runs from 5°F January nights to 83°F July afternoons, with 11.3 inches of precipitation a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 5.0°C, January lows of −15°C, July highs of 28°C, 288 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationRudyard (21 mi N)
- Station IDUSC00247248
- Location48.85°N 110.60°W
- Elevation3,000 ft (914 m)
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Rudyard (21 mi N).
- Jan 30° 5°
- Feb 33° 8°
- Mar 43° 16°
- Apr 56° 26°
- May 66° 36°
- Jun 73° 44°
- Jul 83° 49°
- Aug 83° 46°
- Sep 71° 39°
- Oct 56° 27°
- Nov 41° 16°
- Dec 32° 7°
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 Rudyard (21 mi N) each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 83°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 5°F. The most precipitation falls in June (2.37 in), the least in January (0.30 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 30°F | 5°F | 17.3°F | 0.30 | – | <1 | 30 | 8 h 40 min |
| February | 33°F | 8°F | 20.2°F | 0.35 | – | <1 | 28 | 10 h 10 min |
| March | 43°F | 16°F | 29.7°F | 0.41 | – | <1 | 29 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 56°F | 26°F | 40.9°F | 0.94 | – | <1 | 22 | 13 h 40 min |
| May | 66°F | 36°F | 51.0°F | 1.81 | – | <1 | 10 | 15 h 10 min |
| June | 73°F | 44°F | 58.6°F | 2.37 | – | 2 | 1 | 16 h 10 min |
| July | 83°F | 49°F | 65.8°F | 1.34 | – | 10 | <1 | 15 h 50 min |
| August | 83°F | 46°F | 64.6°F | 1.07 | – | 9 | <1 | 14 h 30 min |
| September | 71°F | 39°F | 54.9°F | 1.12 | – | 2 | 4 | 12 h 40 min |
| October | 56°F | 27°F | 41.5°F | 0.78 | – | <1 | 23 | 10 h 50 min |
| November | 41°F | 16°F | 28.0°F | 0.50 | – | <1 | 27 | 9 h 10 min |
| December | 32°F | 7°F | 19.6°F | 0.35 | – | <1 | 30 | 8 h 20 min |
| Year (annual) | 56°F | 26°F | 41.0°F | 11.34 | – | 22 | 202 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −1°C | −15°C | −8.2°C | 8 mm |
| February | 0°C | −14°C | −6.6°C | 9 mm |
| March | 6°C | −9°C | −1.3°C | 10 mm |
| April | 13°C | −3°C | 4.9°C | 24 mm |
| May | 19°C | 2°C | 10.6°C | 46 mm |
| June | 23°C | 7°C | 14.8°C | 60 mm |
| July | 28°C | 9°C | 18.8°C | 34 mm |
| August | 28°C | 8°C | 18.1°C | 27 mm |
| September | 22°C | 4°C | 12.7°C | 28 mm |
| October | 13°C | −3°C | 5.3°C | 20 mm |
| November | 5°C | −9°C | −2.2°C | 13 mm |
| December | 0°C | −14°C | −6.9°C | 9 mm |
NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for this station. The nearest record that keeps one, Simpson 6 N - Wildhorse (20 miles away), gets 31 inches of snow in a normal year; elevation and distance can change that.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00247248; 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 Rudyard (21 mi N)?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in May, June, July, August and September.
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 USC00247248.
When is the last frost at Rudyard (21 mi N)?
In Rudyard (21 mi N), the last spring frost (32°F) comes after May 30 in half of years and after June 15 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before September 11 in half of years and before August 27 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 301 year in 10 after June 15; 9 in 10 after May 17
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- September 111 year in 10 before August 27; 9 in 10 before September 24
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 103 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 127 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after May 16 in half of springs and before September 23 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Rudyard (21 mi N) in zone 4a in ZIP code 59531, the nearest ZIP area.
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Montana · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00247248; USDA 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map, ZIP listings: PRISM Group, Oregon State University, https://prism.oregonstate.edu, accessed October 8, 2026. 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 Rudyard (21 mi N)?
In a normal year in Rudyard (21 mi N), 22 days a year reach 90°F (1 of them 100°F or more) and 202 nights fall to 32°F or colder.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 22a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 202a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 56high of 32°F or less
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00247248.
How sunny is it at Rudyard (21 mi N)?
Over a year 76% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds at Rudyard (21 mi N), 3.9 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (87%) and December the cloudiest (62%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 67% | 1.3 |
| February | 69% | 2.3 |
| March | 70% | 3.5 |
| April | 72% | 4.9 |
| May | 73% | 5.9 |
| June | 78% | 6.6 |
| July | 87% | 7.1 |
| August | 85% | 5.8 |
| September | 79% | 4.2 |
| October | 73% | 2.6 |
| November | 67% | 1.5 |
| December | 62% | 1.0 |
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 Rudyard (21 mi N) record?
A normal year at Rudyard (21 mi N) brings 8,916 heating degree days, 66% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 198 cooling degree days, 78% fewer than the median (908). Nine months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 1,574 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,479 | 0 |
| February | 1,254 | 0 |
| March | 1,096 | 0 |
| April | 723 | 0 |
| May | 438 | 3 |
| June | 207 | 17 |
| July | 65 | 88 |
| August | 91 | 78 |
| September | 314 | 11 |
| October | 730 | 1 |
| November | 1,110 | 0 |
| December | 1,407 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 8,916 | 198 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00247248. 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.
How does Rudyard (21 mi N)'s climate compare?
Rudyard (21 mi N) is warmer than 19 of the 141 places with their own NOAA record in Montana, and wetter than 9. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 41.0°F is warmer than 7%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Rudyard (21 mi N) 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.
Which places near Rudyard (21 mi N) share this climate record?
Sage Creek Colony has no NOAA station with 1991-2020 normals of its own, and this station is the nearest full record. A place's own climate can differ from these figures, by several degrees where it sits much higher or lower than the station, nearer the coast, or inside a large city's heat; for the larger places the next nearest records are named with their yearly mean, so the spread around them is visible, and places of 50,000 or more have their own page with NOAA's gridded normals.
- Sage Creek Colony, MT28 people · 18 mi W
Source: Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer (place centers) and Vintage 2024 population estimates. Distance and direction from the station to each place's center.
Questions about Rudyard (21 mi N)'s climate
What is the coldest month at Rudyard (21 mi N)?
January, with a normal high of 30°F and a normal low of 5°F. The warmest is July (83°F by day, 49°F at night).
Does it snow at Rudyard (21 mi N)?
Yes. NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for the station; the nearest record that keeps one, Simpson 6 N - Wildhorse (20 miles away), records 31 inches of snow in a normal year.
What is the rainiest month at Rudyard (21 mi N)?
June, with 2.37 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is January with 0.30 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Rudyard (21 mi N) in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Rudyard (21 mi N) in zone 4a in ZIP code 59531, the nearest ZIP area.
How late can frost come at Rudyard (21 mi N)?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after May 30; in one year in ten it comes after June 15. Waiting until June 15 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Montana climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Simpson 6 N - Wildhorse, MT20 miles from this station, 40.6°F a year
- Joplin, MT22 miles from this station, 42.3°F a year
- Gildford, MT24 miles from this station, 41.7°F a year
- Chester, MT29 miles from this station, 41.3°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made