Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 252 PM EST Fri Jan 03 2014 Valid 00Z Sat Jan 04 2014 - 00Z Mon Jan 06 2014 ...Well below normal temperatures will affect the Northeast on Friday... ...The next arctic surge will arrive into the Northern Plains by Saturday... The upcoming period extending into the weekend will continue to feature wintry precipitation and much below normal temperatures. High pressure building in over the Northeast has lead to clear skies and very cold temperatures. Lows across the Mid Atlantic and Northeast will be 20 to 30 degrees below normal tonight. High temperatures today have shot up into the 40's and 50's across portions of the Northern High Plains. A strong cold front will push southward out of Canada this evening leading to temperatures plummeting as much as 50 degrees across the region tonight. By Sunday, high temperatures will be in the -20s and -30s with wind chills as cold as -50s. This cold air will surge southeastward across the Central U.S. tomorrow. Northerly upslope flow will lead to widespread snow showers across the Northern and Central Rockies. The cold front will reach the Southern Plains by Sunday morning. Meanwhile, a strengthening upper level jet and mid level shortwave energy will be co-located aloft, leading to surface low development in the Lower Mississippi Valley. A band of snow will develop north and west of the surface low from Central Oklahoma northward into the Great Lakes. Moist return flow of the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic will lead to rain showers along the Southeast coast and Florida ahead of the approaching storm system. Krekeler Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_wbg.php