Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 312 PM EST Wed Feb 27 2019 Valid 00Z Thu Feb 28 2019 - 00Z Sat Mar 02 2019 ...Heavy snow continues for higher elevations of the West... ...Snow will taper off across the Great Lakes and New England by tomorrow... ...Showers and thunderstorms expected for the Southeast through Friday... ...Below average temperatures will continue for the foreseeable future in the Northern Plains.. A closed upper-level low will sit just off the Pacific Northwest Coast and will a slow moving frontal boundary that will move from the West Coast into the Intermountain West and Great Basin. A surface low will also linger off the Washington/British Columbia coast through most of the short term period. As this front pushes eastward, precipitation will follow--with higher elevation snow and rain impacting the Pacific Northwest and California through Thursday. In fact, with cold air in place, lower elevation cities such as Portland and Seattle can expect a mix of rain/snow overnight and into Friday morning. The Sierra Nevada can expect up to 10 inches through Thursday morning. By Friday, most of the precipitation will be light and concentrate along the northern and central Rockies. A mix of light showers and snow can also be expected through Friday morning mostly for coastal Oregon and northern California. Heavy snow continues to impact mostly the lower Great Lakes portions of New England as an occluded system passes this evening. By Thursday morning, the surface low will be off the New England coast and snow will taper off with some remnant snow showers along the lee side of Lake Michigan and Lake Erie. By Thursday afternoon, surface high pressure builds in and tranquil conditions will prevail--with the next incoming system approaching the Upper Midwest by Friday. This is expected to bring light snow across the Great Lakes through the weekend. As a warm front pushes northward across the Southeast this evening, it will weaken while still bringing warm, moist air across the region. Meanwhile, a frontal boundary will stall from the southern Plains eastward into the Carolinas. Multiple waves are expected to move along this boundary, which will help focus areas for showers and thunderstorms through the end of the week. Most of this activity is not expected to produce flash flooding, although localized flooding could be possible. Below normal temperatures will prevail across the northern/central Plains and Upper Midwest through Friday. In fact, high temperatures across Montana and North and South Dakota will be nearly 30 degrees below average. Meanwhile, most of the Southeast and southern Plains will remain near to above average. The West Coast will be near to just below average due to the active pattern over the next few days. The Northeast and Mid-Atlantic will be below average through Thursday--rebounding to near normal by Friday. After 7 years at the Weather Prediction Center, this will be my last discussion. It has been an amazing experience working with some of the best people in the NWS. I have gained an immeasurable amount of knowledge on so many things while working here. It has been a challenge forecasting coast to coast while seeing incredible events, from winter weather to land-falling tropical cyclones, impacting the U.S. Thank you to everyone! Reinhart Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_ndfd.php