Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 300 AM EST Fri Jan 18 2019 Valid 12Z Fri Jan 18 2019 - 12Z Sun Jan 20 2019 ...Major winter storm expected to move rapidly across the Midwest into New England during the weekend... ...More heavy rain expected to impact the Pacific Northwest into northern California during the weekend... A low pressure system that has been tracking across the Pacific and the western U.S. for the past few days is about to exit the Rockies into the central Plains. This low pressure system will be re-energized over the Plains as it merges with a strong surge of arctic air from Canada. Widespread snow combined with very strong winds will spread rapidly across the Midwest and parts of the central Plains on Saturday. As the storm intensifies further on Saturday night, heavy snow is forecast to develop and rapidly spread across the Ohio Valley, reaching much of New England early on Sunday. The storm is expected to become quite intense on Sunday over interior New England where conditions could approach blizzard criteria. Near and to the south of the storm track, much milder air from the south will keep the precipitation as rain. In fact, strong to possibly severe thunderstorms are forecast for the Deep South for Saturday from the lower Mississippi Valley eastward as a strong cold front approaches. In the wake of the storm, an arctic surface high will plunge southward from Canada and result in frigid temperatures across the Plains and the Upper Midwest, with temperature departures on the order of 15 to 25 degrees below normal! Kong Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_ndfd.php