Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 228 PM EST Sun Mar 04 2018 Valid 00Z Mon Mar 05 2018 - 00Z Wed Mar 07 2018 ...A major winter storm with heavy snow and strong winds will impact portions of the northern Plains and upper Midwest...with blizzard conditions expected locally... ...Widespread showers and embedded thunderstorms will overspread the lower and middle Mississippi Valley Monday and advance east across the Gulf Coast states, and the Ohio and Tennessee Valleys through Tuesday... ...Very dry, mild and windy conditions over the southern High Plains will foster an enhanced fire danger risk... The upper-level trough and surface cold front moving east through the Great Basin and Rockies today will move out over the central U.S. on Monday and lead to a major winter storm impacting a large area of the northern Plains and parts of the far upper Midwest. Heavy snow and strong winds are expected as low pressure intensifies and slowly moves east across the central Plains and Midwest. Blizzard conditions are expected from southwest North Dakota down across much of central South Dakota and far northern Nebraska given the expected high winds. Over 1 foot of snow is expected locally with this winter storm going through Tuesday before the system then begins to move toward the Eastern U.S. Most of the Eastern Seaboard is expected to start off the week cool and dry ahead of this system. One exception is parts of southern New England where some snow shower activity is expected Monday in association with an upper level disturbance crossing the region. Southerly flow increasing ahead of the aforementioned storm system will also be transporting plenty of Gulf of Mexico moisture off to the north with time, and this will lead to numerous showers and thunderstorms developing over the lower and middle Mississippi Valley and then spreading east across the Ohio and Tennessee Valleys and including the Gulf Coast states Monday and Tuesday. Some locally heavy rainfall will occur, but right now the amounts do not appear to be heavy enough to support much in the way of a flooding threat. The weather though will remain quite dry and windy going through Monday across much of the southern High Plains region. The gusty winds ahead of a cold front and also behind it coupled with low relative humidities will maintain the threat for dangerous fire weather conditions. The fire weather threat should tend to subside by Tuesday though as the winds begin to diminish. Elsewhere, the Western U.S. will start off the week with cool temperatures, but with the most recent winter storm pulling off to the east, the conditions should begin to dry out with high pressure building in across the Intermountain West. Some gradual moderation in temperatures can be expected toward midweek, with the warmest temperatures overall focused down across the Desert Southwest. Orrison Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_ndfd.php