Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 349 PM EST Fri Feb 07 2014 Valid 00Z Sat Feb 08 2014 - 00Z Mon Feb 10 2014 ...Wintry weather continues to affect several areas of the nation into this weekend... ...More heavy snow on the way for Oregon and other parts of the West and very wet/snowy weather expected for the weekend especially for northern California as an "atmospheric river" pattern becomes established... ...Light winter weather event expected for parts of Texas and Oklahoma...the lower Mississippi Valley...Tennessee and Ohio Valleys and parts of the Middle Atlantic states into Saturday... A succession of fast moving storm systems in concert with an upper level pattern that keeps cold air entrenched over parts of the Pacific Northwest...including parts of coastal Oregon and the Columbia Gorge...will continue for the next couple days. Perhaps the most important of these systems will affect the region tonight. In addition...these disturbances will continue moving eastward...spreading heavy snowfall across elevated portions of northern California, eastern Oregon, southern Idaho, northern Nevada and northern Utah. Heavy snow is also likely to fall across the Grand Tetons and Wind River Mountains in western Wyoming and across much of the Colorado Rockies. Over the next several days...the northern Sierra range in California will likely be seeing several feet of snow into Sunday. Heavy rainfall will be common across the lowlands of northern California with several days of soaking rains...as an "atmospheric river" of concentrated moisture impacts northern California. The heaviest rains will occur as these pulses of deep moisture interact with the rugged terrain...resulting in 4 to 8 inch amounts along the coast and in the foothills of the Sierra. Cold air persists across the central and eastern United States with one area of cold high pressure moves east northeastward from the Ohio Valley across New England through Saturday evening. A weak disturbance will move east northeastward across the southeastern United Sates while several separate weak systems move eastward across the northern tier of the US. These are much weaker versions of the highly advertised "big storm" that looks more and more likely to remain as relatively small nuisance weather events. However...a weak area of low pressure will develop off the Southeast Coast early Saturday and rain will fall across the Southeast. However...with cold air still entrenched over much of the central and eastern US...light snow/sleet and freezing rain could create travel problems overnight into Sunday from eastern Texas and Oklahoma across the lower Mississippi Valley across the Upper Tennessee and lower Ohio Valleys and then into the Ohio Valley and parts of the Middle Atlantic states into Saturday. Amounts will likely be quite light but the greatest hazards will likely be on the roads. Another large area of cold high pressure over Northwestern Canada will again surge southeastward into the Northern Plains by Saturday night and spread eastward across the Midwest toward the East coast by Sunday morning. Another area of snow/sleet and freezing rain will likely be found along the leading edge of this airmass as well...causing more possible travel headaches from the Central US toward the East coast including the northern portions of the Southeast US again on Sunday evening into Monday. Kocin Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_wbg.php