Sonnette (7 mi SW), Montana climate: Climate normals at a NOAA weather station
Sonnette (7 mi SW)'s normal year runs from 10°F January nights to 87°F July afternoons, with 15.9 inches of precipitation and 29 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 7.1°C, January lows of −12°C, July highs of 30°C, 404 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationSonnette (7 mi SW)
- Station IDUSC00247740
- Location45.32°N 105.91°W
- Elevation3,914 ft (1,193 m)
On October 22, the normal high in Sonnette (7 mi SW) is 57°F and the normal low 27°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 17%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Sonnette (7 mi SW).
- Jan 37° 10°
- Feb 39° 11°
- Mar 49° 21°
- Apr 57° 29°
- May 67° 38°
- Jun 77° 47°
- Jul 87° 53°
- Aug 86° 51°
- Sep 75° 42°
- Oct 60° 30°
- Nov 47° 18°
- Dec 37° 10°
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 Sonnette (7 mi SW) each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 87°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 10°F. The most precipitation falls in May (2.95 in), the least in January (0.50 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 37°F | 10°F | 23.2°F | 0.50 | 3.9 | 4 | <1 | 31 | 9 h 10 min |
| February | 39°F | 11°F | 25.0°F | 0.70 | 6.6 | 6 | <1 | 28 | 10 h 20 min |
| March | 49°F | 21°F | 34.7°F | 0.91 | 5.0 | 5 | <1 | 28 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 57°F | 29°F | 43.0°F | 1.85 | 3.4 | 7 | <1 | 21 | 13 h 30 min |
| May | 67°F | 38°F | 52.3°F | 2.95 | 0.2 | 9 | <1 | 9 | 14 h 50 min |
| June | 77°F | 47°F | 61.7°F | 2.69 | 0.0 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 15 h 40 min |
| July | 87°F | 53°F | 69.7°F | 1.67 | 0.0 | 7 | 10 | <1 | 15 h 20 min |
| August | 86°F | 51°F | 68.5°F | 1.10 | 0.0 | 5 | 9 | <1 | 14 h 10 min |
| September | 75°F | 42°F | 58.5°F | 1.09 | 0.0 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 12 h 40 min |
| October | 60°F | 30°F | 44.8°F | 1.38 | 1.3 | 6 | <1 | 19 | 11 h |
| November | 47°F | 18°F | 32.5°F | 0.56 | 3.1 | 4 | <1 | 28 | 9 h 30 min |
| December | 37°F | 10°F | 23.6°F | 0.51 | 5.6 | 4 | <1 | 31 | 8 h 50 min |
| Year (annual) | 60°F | 30°F | 44.8°F | 15.91 | 29.1 | 68 | 24 | 199 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 3°C | −12°C | −4.9°C | 13 mm | 10 cm |
| February | 4°C | −11°C | −3.9°C | 18 mm | 17 cm |
| March | 9°C | −6°C | 1.5°C | 23 mm | 13 cm |
| April | 14°C | −2°C | 6.1°C | 47 mm | 9 cm |
| May | 19°C | 3°C | 11.3°C | 75 mm | 1 cm |
| June | 25°C | 8°C | 16.5°C | 68 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 30°C | 12°C | 20.9°C | 42 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 30°C | 11°C | 20.3°C | 28 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 24°C | 5°C | 14.7°C | 28 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 15°C | −1°C | 7.1°C | 35 mm | 3 cm |
| November | 8°C | −8°C | 0.3°C | 14 mm | 8 cm |
| December | 3°C | −12°C | −4.7°C | 13 mm | 14 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00247740; 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 Sonnette (7 mi SW)?
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 USC00247740.
When is the last frost at Sonnette (7 mi SW)?
In Sonnette (7 mi SW), the last spring frost (32°F) comes after May 25 in half of years and after June 7 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before September 19 in half of years and before September 1 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 251 year in 10 after June 7; 9 in 10 after May 12
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- September 191 year in 10 before September 1; 9 in 10 before October 1
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 115 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 136 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after May 14 in half of springs and before September 29 in half of autumns.
By the USDA's method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, the station is in plant hardiness zone 4b: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −25°F (26 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Montana · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00247740; 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 Sonnette (7 mi SW)?
In a normal year in Sonnette (7 mi SW), 24 days a year reach 90°F (1 of them 100°F or more), 199 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 68 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 24a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 199a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 44high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 68a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 6a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1965) is 107°F, on July 27, 2021; the lowest is −44°F, on December 24, 1983.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 2019, with 23.57 in; the snowiest season is 2022–23, with 95.6 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00247740; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00247740. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is it at Sonnette (7 mi SW)?
Over a year 78% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds at Sonnette (7 mi SW), 4.2 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (89%) and December the cloudiest (71%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 77% | 1.9 |
| February | 77% | 2.9 |
| March | 73% | 3.9 |
| April | 71% | 4.9 |
| May | 73% | 5.9 |
| June | 81% | 6.9 |
| July | 89% | 7.3 |
| August | 87% | 6.1 |
| September | 82% | 4.6 |
| October | 74% | 3.0 |
| November | 74% | 2.0 |
| December | 71% | 1.4 |
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 Sonnette (7 mi SW) record?
A normal year at Sonnette (7 mi SW) brings 7,749 heating degree days, 44% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 416 cooling degree days, 54% 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 2,068 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,297 | 0 |
| February | 1,120 | 0 |
| March | 939 | 0 |
| April | 659 | 0 |
| May | 397 | 5 |
| June | 146 | 45 |
| July | 28 | 175 |
| August | 46 | 154 |
| September | 230 | 35 |
| October | 628 | 2 |
| November | 977 | 0 |
| December | 1,283 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 7,749 | 416 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00247740. 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 Sonnette (7 mi SW) been warmer than normal?
2023 averaged 45.3°F, 0.5°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 44.8°F. 2 of the 3 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 46.5°F | +1.7°F | 10.40 | 74.0 |
| 2022 | 44.4°F | −0.4°F | 16.07 | 91.7 |
| 2023 | 45.3°F | +0.5°F | 20.01 | 66.4 |
Over 38 complete years from 1967 to 2023, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 3.9°F per century (+0.22°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USC00247740; trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Sonnette (7 mi SW)'s climate compare?
Sonnette (7 mi SW) is warmer than 87 of the 141 places with their own NOAA record in Montana, and wetter than 91. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 44.8°F is warmer than 18%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Sonnette (7 mi SW) 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 Sonnette (7 mi SW)'s climate
What is the coldest month at Sonnette (7 mi SW)?
January, with a normal high of 37°F and a normal low of 10°F. The warmest is July (87°F by day, 53°F at night).
Does it snow at Sonnette (7 mi SW)?
Yes: 29 inches in a normal year, falling on 11 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in February (6.6 inches).
What is the rainiest month at Sonnette (7 mi SW)?
May, with 2.95 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is January with 0.50 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Sonnette (7 mi SW) in?
By the same method at the station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −25°F (26 years, 1991-2020): zone 4b.
How late can frost come at Sonnette (7 mi SW)?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after May 25; in one year in ten it comes after June 7. Waiting until June 7 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Montana climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Moorhead (9 mi NE), MT13 miles from this station, 46.2°F a year
- Broadus, MT26 miles from this station, 48.2°F a year
- Biddle, MT29 miles from this station, 47.4°F a year
- Brandenberg, MT37 miles from this station, 46.6°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made