Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 300 AM EST Wed Jan 23 2019 Valid 12Z Wed Jan 23 2019 - 12Z Fri Jan 25 2019 ...Winter storm impacting parts of the central Plains to the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes today... ...Active weather in the Pacific Northwest will gradually abate in the next couple of days... ...Dangerous wind chills return to the northern Plains and Midwest Wednesday night into Thursday... A winter storm will continue to spread snow from the upper Midwest toward the Great Lakes today as the associated low pressure system intensifies and moves across these areas with up to a foot of accumulation possible. Some mixed precipitation can also be expected near the track of the storm center today across lower Michigan. South of the storm track, rain is expected ahead of a strong cold front with some potential of heavy rain from the Mid-Atlantic southward to Florida through Thursday afternoon. Widespread rain totals of around an inch or more are forecast. The central to eastern Gulf coast region will have best chance of seeing thunderstorms today, some of which could become severe as the strong cold front approaches. Meanwhile, moisture associated with a rather energetic Pacific cyclone currently is bringing moderate to heavy rain across the Pacific Northwest coast. The strong upper-level flow will continue to carry the moisture further inland across the Intermountain region in the form of snow. The snow will then move into the northern Rockies tonight and early Thursday just as the next surge of arctic air from central Canada arrives. A clipper type low pressure system developing along an arctic front could bring a period of snow squalls across the upper Midwest later tonight into Thursday morning. Frigid air will then usher into the Plains behind this clipper as an arctic high pressure system plunges southward through the Plains. High temperatures on Thursday will struggle to reach above zero from North Dakota to Wisconsin, with widespread wind chill values between minus 10 and minus 20. The clipper and the arctic front will then reach the lower Great Lakes and the Appalachians Friday morning respectively with a period of snow and falling temperatures. Kong Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_ndfd.php