Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 349 AM EDT Fri Oct 21 2016 Valid 12Z Fri Oct 21 2016 - 12Z Sun Oct 23 2016 ...Much cooler weather arriving to the eastern U.S. by this weekend... ...Heavy rain over the Northeast U.S. through Saturday... A significant pattern change is taking place across much of the central and eastern U.S. to close out the work week. After several days of unseasonal heat and humidity from the Plains to the East Coast, a strong cold will rapidly approach the East Coast by Friday afternoon. This will put an end to the late-August conditions with much cooler temperatures arriving in time for the weekend. Some areas may get temperatures falling 25 degrees from Thursday to Saturday after the front clears the coast. Surface low cyclogenesis along this frontal boundary is forecast to intensify over New England going into Friday night as a deep upper level trough becomes amplified and divergent aloft. Areas of heavy rain and gusty winds are expected across the Northeast U.S. over the next 24 to 48 hours, with some locations across northern New England getting on the order of 2 to 4 inches of rainfall by Saturday night. There will be enough cold air on the back side of this storm system to support accumulating snow across the higher elevations of northern New York to Maine. Elsewhere across the continental U.S., expect relatively quiet conditions from the Intermountain West to the Ohio Valley with high pressure governing the weather pattern. For the Pacific Northwest, another round of rain can be expected by Saturday with another low pressure system approaching the coast. D. Hamrick Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_wbg.php