Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 357 PM EST Thu Dec 26 2013 Valid 00Z Fri Dec 27 2013 - 00Z Sun Dec 29 2013 ...Shower activity expected along the Gulf coast states... ...An arctic boundary dropping down from Canada will bring another blast of winter to the north central U.S. this weekend... Scattered showers are expected along much of the Gulf coast states late this week and into the weekend...to the north of a frontal boundary strengthening in the Gulf of Mexico. Initially...the best chance for any organized activity will stay over South Texas...but as a piece of closed energy aloft opens up and lifts out of the Southern Plains...a surface low developing along the strengthening boundary in the Gulf could bring some moderate to locally heavy rains into the Central Gulf coast by Saturday afternoon. After a brief warm up...another arctic front will begin to plunge through the North Central U.S. Saturday morning. Plummeting temperatures...strong winds...and light snows...will make for blustery conditions behind the sinking boundary. A deepening coastal low will clip Maine with accumulating snows as it races from the New England coast to the Canadian Maritimes Thursday night. Conditions should quickly clear out across the Northeast Friday morning...with the exception of some light lake effect snows...which should continue downwind of the Lower Great Lakes through Friday evening. A slug of Pacific moisture surging inland will bring widespread moderate to heavy precipitation into British Columbia. Although the bulk of the significant activity will stay north of the Canadian border...some light rain and snow could reach into the extreme northwestern corner of Washington state. Gerhardt Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_wbg.php