Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 345 AM EDT Fri May 17 2013 Valid 12Z Fri May 17 2013 - 12Z Sun May 19 2013 ***Warm weather continues across the southern U.S.*** ***Cooler weather for the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic*** ***Scattered showers and storms in the western U.S.*** Above normal temperatures are forecast to continue over the next few days from the Desert Southwest to the Southeast. This region will be south of the main frontal zone situated across the nation's mid-section. There will also be noticeable levels of humidity with dewpoints well into the 60s. Numerous showers and storms are likely from the Deep South to the Carolinas through Saturday as Gulf of Mexico moisture surges northward around a surface high centered over the western Atlantic. Farther to the north, a slow moving cold front is forecast to edge southward from the Ohio Valley and the Northeast into the Mid-Atlantic region, bringing temperatures closer to average for this time of year. Elsewhere, scattered showers and storms remain in the forecast for much of the Inter-Mountain West and extending into the Pacific Northwest for Friday and Saturday. A large scale trough in the atmosphere will allow for enough instability for convection over this region, and some onshore flow from the Pacific will generate some showers for the coastal areas of Oregon and Washington state. Hamrick Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_wbg.php