Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 335 AM EST Sat Jan 24 2015 Valid 12Z Sat Jan 24 2015 - 12Z Mon Jan 26 2015 ...A winter storm lifting up the Eastern Seaboard will bring snow and freezing rain to sections of the northeastern U.S... ...An Alberta clipper should spread snow from the Upper Midwest to the Mid-Atlantic from Saturday to Monday... ...Well above normal temperatures expected over the central U.S... The pattern across the nation will be rather amplified in nature with a deep upper trough anchoring the eastern half of the country. Meanwhile, across the western states, a broad ridge will remain a mainstay feature while a closed low is expected to undercut it across the subtropical Eastern Pacific. This particular setup is also known as a rex block. At the start of the period, a coastal storm is in the process of strengthening in the vicinity of the Virginia Capes. This system has access to abundant moisture as evident by the widespread heavy precipitation lifting up the East Coast. A mixture of precipitation types have been noted across the Mid-Atlantic given the intrusion of milder maritime air into the region. Over the course of the next 24 hours, expect the heaviest snowfall and ice accumulations across coastal New England where the WPC winter weather desk forecasts 6 to 10 inches of snow. The rapidly deepening surface low will also enhance the pressure gradient across the Northeast which will bring windy conditions to the region on Saturday. The next round of wintry precipitation will come from an Alberta Clipper which should reach the Upper Midwest by Saturday evening. In general, such systems are quick moving and do not contain a whole lot of moisture. With that said, this feature is forecast to race from the northern tier of the country to the Mid-Atlantic over the course of the next 60 hours. This will spread snow from the northern tier through the Ohio Valley and into the Mid-Atlantic states. The corridor of heaviest snow appears to be across northern Indiana into Central Ohio where 4 to 8 inches are possible. Well above normal temperatures are in the forecast over the Northern Rockies into the Northern/Central Plains. Downsloping winds will aid in abundant warmth for late January with temperature anomalies of 20 to 30 degrees above climatology. In fact, high temperatures this weekend may reach the 60 degree mark over the Central Plains while 40s and 50s will be more commonplace over the Northern High Plains. Elsewhere, above the western U.S. ridge will be persistent onshore flow accompanied by a series of mid-level disturbances crossing Washington and British Columbia. Areas of upslope terrain can expect the heaviest precipitation with snow levels being rather high given the Pacific origin of the advancing air masses. Rubin-Oster Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_wbg.php