Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 351 PM EST Sat Mar 1 2014 Valid 00Z Sun Mar 2 2014 - 00Z Tue Mar 4 2014 ***Arctic chill continues over the Upper Midwest*** ***Widespread showers and snow for the Western U.S.*** ***More snow for the Central and Eastern states*** The extremely cold temperatures continue like a broken record across the Northern Plains, Upper Midwest, and Great Lakes, which has been the case for much of the winter. A ruthless supply of frigid temperatures will continue to be ushered southward with a 1040+ mb surface high that originated over the Northwest Territories of Canada. This will basically equate to highs in the single digits and teens, and subzero lows. These will be some of the coldest March temperatures ever observed over this region! The Western U.S. will remain active over the next two days with sustained westerly flow from the Pacific Ocean along with a stationary surface front from the Washington coast to Colorado. Mainly scattered showers and mountain snow showers can be expected, with some locally concentrated areas of moderate to heavy snow where forcing is best. The rainfall will be abating for California after the recent round of heavy rain and mountain snow, with some scattered showers remaining. The big storm system that recently affected the West Coast is now emerging over the Great Plains and is expected to make weather headlines over the next few days. The shortwave energy aloft, along with an enormous temperature contrast from north to south, will result in a couple waves of low pressure that will develop along an impressive Arctic front. Widespread snow and mixed precipitation is forecast from the Central Plains to the Mid-Atlantic, where numerous winter storm watches and warnings are already in effect. Severe weather is a possibility from eastern Texas to the Deep South as Gulf moisture and instability gets advected northward towards the surface low. D. Hamrick Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_wbg.php