Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 357 PM EST Wed Jan 01 2014 Valid 00Z Thu Jan 02 2014 - 00Z Sat Jan 04 2014 ...A complex storm system will raise havoc on the Eastern U.S. late this week... A swath of light snows will continue to develop to the north of a frontal boundary stretched from the Middle Mississippi Valley to the northern Mid-Atlantic states Wednesday evening...while a rich supply of moisture surrounding a strengthening front in the Gulf of Mexico will continue to fuel an organized axis of rains across Central Gulf coast and Southeast. On Thursday...these two features will begin to merge as the front stretched from the Middle Mississippi Valley to the northern Mid-Atlantic states pushes east/southeastward as a cold front and a surface low developing along the front in the Gulf lifts northeastward towards northern Florida. The complex interaction of these two systems will raise havoc on the Eastern U.S. late this week. Accumulating snows are expected across the Ohio Valley...northern Mid-Atlantic states...and northeast....while moderate to heavy rains will push through the Southeast. The bigger story with these merging systems will most likely be the rapidly deepening surface low off the Eastern Seaboard early Friday...which will bring strong winds and bitter temperatures into the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states. This deepening low will also have the potential to hit coastal New England with heavy snows before it races into the Canadian Maritimes. Out West...weather will remain rather tranquil with near to above normal temperatures. An exception to this will be in the northwest corner of the Nation...where a Pacific front moving onshore will help trigger showers over the Pacific Northwest and Northern Rockies. Gerhardt Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_wbg.php