Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 257 PM EST Mon Jan 1 2018 Valid 00Z Tue Jan 2 2018 - 00Z Thu Jan 4 2018 ...Amplified weather pattern continues with western ridge and eastern trough... The anomalously cold weather across the central and eastern U.S. will remain quite persistent going through the middle of the work week. A rather pronounced dip in the jet stream and highly amplified upper level trough is allowing for multiple cold fronts to cross the Plains, and then reaching the East Coast. This is allowing frigid air masses to flow southward into the U.S. unabated, with many areas under wind chill advisories and wind chill warnings from the northern Plains to the Ohio Valley. The bitterly cold weather will also be unrelenting across the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast U.S., where wind chills are also expected to be in the sub-zero realm at times, especially during the overnight periods. The Deep South and Gulf Coast region will not be spared from the realities of winter. Hard freeze warnings have been posted from southern Texas to the southeast U.S. coast for widespread lows in the teens and low 20s, and highs in the 20s and 30s. These values are on the order of 20 degrees below normal, and a few record lows are possible before this weather pattern modifies. The part of the nation that will be spared the wrath of Old Man Winter will be the southwestern U.S., where above normal temperatures and dry weather will continue. In the precipitation department, a dry pattern is expected across the majority of the continental U.S. with a few exceptions. Some lake effect snow is expected across the favored regions of Michigan, and downwind of Lakes Erie and Ontario. Some showers are possible for parts of central and northern California with a weak disturbance offshore. By Wednesday, a developing storm near the northern Bahamas will likely provide enough moisture for coastal rain from the Outer Banks of North Carolina to Florida, with some wintry precipitation possible farther inland. This system will be monitored closely for future impacts beyond Wednesday for the East Coast. D. Hamrick Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_ndfd.php