Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 435 AM EDT Tue Apr 22 2014 Valid 12Z Tue Apr 22 2014 - 12Z Thu Apr 24 2014 ...Heavy snow is in the forecast across the higher elevations of the Northwestern U.S... ...Severe weather is possible over the Southern/Central Plains on Wednesday... ...An enhanced wildfire danger will affect the Desert Southwest and Four Corners region through Thursday... The upper pattern will be quite amplified across the nation with a pair of trofs affecting the Western and Eastern U.S., respectively while a ridge will be centered in the middle of the country. The upper trof moving toward the West Coast is forecast to be quite potent as a series of smaller scale impulses track inland. Strong lift associated with the trof will help spread an expansive area of precipitation across much of the Western U.S. with upslope flow bringing locally heavier amounts. The snow expected should be elevation dependent with the Cascades, Bitterroots, and Tetons seeing a brunt of the action through early Thursday. Some of the heftier amounts will be across the latter two mountain ranges where the WPC winter weather desk is advertising over a foot of snow the next couple of days. The tightening pressure gradient over the Intermountain West will carry an inherent wildfire danger, particularly across the Desert Southwest and Four Corners Region. Given the antecedent conditions are quite dry, the warm temperatures and gusty winds will make the environment more conducive to wildfire development. The Storm Prediction Center fire weather outlook indicates the region is in an elevated to critical risk for wildfires through Thursday morning. Meanwhile, the other aspect of this system will be the potential for severe weather across the Southern/Central Plains on Wednesday. The combination of enhanced moisture transport from the Gulf with sufficient instability will aid in the development of severe thunderstorms across portions of the Great Plains. The atmosphere is expected to be much more stable across the northern tier of the country with cool overrunning precipitation in the forecast over the Northern Plains/Upper Midwest. On Wednesday, high temperatures should only reach the lower 50s over the Upper Midwest while 70s and even some 80s are possible over the Central Plains where they will be located south of the warm front. The other active system during the period will be over the Eastern U.S. A swift moving cold front will spread showers and thunderstorms eastward with the boundary reaching the coastline by later tonight. Much of the action should focus across New England as a closed low develops offshore. The associated surface cyclone will gather additional strength which will enhance the moisture transport toward the Northeastern states. While much of the region can expect rain as the primary precipitation type, a few inches of snow will be possible over Northern Maine with even a slight threat for icing right along the border with Quebec. Rubin-Oster Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_wbg.php