Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 259 PM EST Thu Feb 04 2016 Valid 00Z Fri Feb 05 2016 - 00Z Sun Feb 07 2016 ...Heavy rain possible along the southern Mid-Atlantic Coast through Friday morning... ...Heavy snow over parts of the Cascades and northern Rockies... ...Heavy rain possible over parts of the Olympic Peninsula... The cold front that brought showers and thunderstorms to much of the Eastern Seaboard yesterday and today will move offshore this evening, with the southern flank exiting Florida by Friday afternoon. Moisture pooling along the boundary will aid in continue to produce rain primarily for coastal areas from the Carolinas to Florida. Rain amounts will generally be 1 inch or less for these areas. Eastern areas of North Carolina may see isolated amounts near 2 inches. A front over the Upper Midwest will move eastward from the Upper Mississippi Valley to the Lower Great Lakes by Friday evening - producing light snow over parts of the Upper Mississippi Valley and Upper Great Lakes on Friday. As high pressure builds and expands over the South and East, the system will lift northward bringing slightly warmer air to the Great Lakes region this weekend. Snow accumulations for the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes region through Sunday morning will mostly be in the 1 to 6 inch range. The heaviest snowfall, of 6 to 10 inches, is expected to fall just north of northern Michigan over Lake Superior and southern Ontario. Rain and higher elevation snow is forecast for much of the Pacific Northwest through Friday as a low pressure system approaches from the Gulf of Alaska. Areas or precipitation will steadily expand south and eastward - snow will reach parts of the Northern/Central Rockies by by this evening, into the Northern/Central Plains by Friday morning and into the Upper Mississippi Valley/Upper Great Lakes by Friday evening. Up to 2 feet of snow is possible for the higher elevations of the Cascades and near 1 foot for the Sawtooths in northern Idaho. Campbell Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_wbg.php