Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 338 PM EST Wed Mar 05 2014 Valid 00Z Thu Mar 06 2014 - 00Z Sat Mar 08 2014 ...Heavy precipitation for the Pacific Northwest and Northern California... ...Heavy rain along the Southeast Coast... Heavy rainfall is expected for the Pacific Northwest over the next 48 hours. A strong upper level disturbance approaching the Northwest coast combined with ample pacific moisture and upslope flow will allow for heavy rain to affect coastal Oregon and Washington and later Northern California. Pacific moisture will stream over the Cascades and into the Northern Rockies producing heavy snows in the higher elevations and valley rain. As the upper level disturbance moves across the intermountain west, precipitation will overspread the region and reach the Central Rockies in 48 hours. Colder air filtering in aloft will reduce snow levels in time across the west. In the Gulf of Mexico, a stationary boundary in place will interact with an upper level trough moving through the Southern Plains. A surface low will develop in the northern Gulf by tomorrow morning. Strong southerly flow east of the surface low will draw a moist airmass into the Southeast, with heavy rain expected to break out across the region. As the low moves eastward off the Southeast coast it will interact with a favorable upper level jet structure, leading to moderate deepening of the surface low by the end of the period. As the low deepens strong easterly flow off the Atlantic will create a wet and windy day for much of the Carolinas on Friday. Cold air damming along the Southern Appalachians could possible lead to an area of freezing rain in western North Carolina and western Virginia. Across the Northern Plains an area of light precipitation will break out along a cold front pushing southward across the region. With cold air in place at the surface and warm advection push temperatures above freezing aloft, freezing rain is possible. Little ice accumulation is expected. Krekeler Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_wbg.php