Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 142 AM EST Sat Dec 15 2018 Valid 12Z Sat Dec 15 2018 - 12Z Mon Dec 17 2018 ...Strong storm systems for both the West Coast and East Coast this weekend... There will be two main weather features of interest through the weekend. The first will be a deep and vertically stacked low pressure system slowly tracking across the southeastern United States, with secondary cyclogenesis expected to occur near the Mid-Atlantic coast by Sunday morning. The result will be copious amounts of rainfall from the southeast coast and Ohio Valley to southern New England. In fact, the rainfall from this event alone will be enough for some cities across the East Coast region to establish new annual rainfall records, including Washington, D.C. Given the warmer nature of this storm system, any winter weather should be relegated to the higher elevations of interior southern New England and all rain for the major cities along the Interstate 95 corridor. The second area of interest will be the West Coast states as a powerful Pacific storm system approaches the coast Saturday night. The extremely strong surface low is forecast to weaken as it tracks across the Gulf of Alaska. However, the trailing cold front will have enough of a pressure gradient with it to generate strong winds and high waves from northern California to western Washington, and various wind and surf related bulletins have been issued regarding these hazards. Heavy rain and high mountain snow are also expected as the front moves inland, particularly for northern California and northwest Washington. Elsewhere across the continental U.S., sunny to partly cloudy conditions are expected from the Rockies to the Mississippi River as an expansive high pressure ridge governs the weather pattern through the weekend. Overall, temperatures are expected to be near to above average for the majority of the continental U.S. through Monday morning with no major incursions of arctic air masses expected. D. Hamrick Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_ndfd.php