Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 215 AM EDT Wed Oct 09 2019 Valid 12Z Wed Oct 09 2019 - 12Z Fri Oct 11 2019 ...Winter storm to bring heavy snow and strong winds across parts of the Northern Rockies and Northern Plains... ...Record low temperatures possible across the western U.S. Thursday and Friday... ...Developing low pressure off the Eastern Seaboard could bring heavy rain and gusty winds to portions of the Northeast... A vigorous upper-level trough and strong associated cold front are forecast to move across the western U.S. today, crossing the Great Basin and northern/central Rockies by Wed night. Snow is expected today across portions of the northern Rockies and Northern High Plains (where precipitation may initially begin as rain) as colder air works into those regions behind the frontal boundary. By Thu into Thu night, a more significant area of low pressure is forecast to develop along the front across the Upper Midwest, with snow continuing to fall west of the low across the Northern Plains. Through Thu night, the system is expected to produce potentially heavy snowfall amounts in excess of a foot across portions of the northern Rockies, with many areas across the Northern Plains also reaching/surpassing a foot of snow by Friday morning (and additional snow expected to continue into the day Friday). Strong and gusty winds may also accompany the snow, resulting in difficult travel conditions at times. Farther south, windy conditions associated with the frontal passage are forecast to lead to critical fire weather conditions from portions of California and the Great Basin east to the central Rockies. Additionally, in the cold air mass north of the frontal boundary, record low temperatures are possible from the Northwest to the northern Great Basin Thu morning, east into the Rockies by Fri morning. An area of low pressure is forecast to gradually deepen off the Eastern Seaboard through Thu/Thu night, moving very little as an upper-level low develops over top of the system. The system is expected to produce heavy rainfall and gusty winds across portions of southern New England. 1 to 4 inches of rain are possible through Thu night, with the heaviest amounts expected to fall across eastern Massachusetts (including the islands), where amounts in excess of 4 inches are possible. Farther south, scattered to numerous (locally heavy) showers and thunderstorms are forecast ahead of the front across the Florida Peninsula. Ryan Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_ndfd.php