Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 304 PM EST Tue Jan 28 2020 Valid 00Z Wed Jan 29 2020 - 00Z Fri Jan 31 2020 ...Unsettled weather continues across the Pacific Northwest to much of the Rockies... ...A low pressure system expected to spread rain across the Deep South and some wintry weather over the central Plains... An active Pacific jet stream will continue to spread unsettled weather into the Pacific Northwest across the Intermountain West and then into many areas of the Rockies through Thursday. The westerly flow will bring relatively mild Pacific air across the country for the next few days. This will keep snow levels relatively high in the mountains while rain is expected for the lower elevations. Snowfall amounts in excess of a foot can be expected for the northern Cascades on Wednesday. Further downstream across much of the rest of the country, a split flow pattern will bring milder than normal temperatures across the Northern Tier, while cooler than normal temperatures are expected for the Deep South due to clouds and precipitation associated with a low pressure system. This system is currently gathering strength over the southern Plains as a swath of showers spreads eastward from the central Plains into the central Gulf states. Enough instability will lead to some thunderstorms near the Gulf Coast. Meanwhile, temperatures are cold enough for some snow to fall over parts of the central Plains. Snowfall amounts are forecast to be light, with a couple of inches through Wednesday morning. By Wednesday night into Thursday, much of the rain is expected to move across the eastern Gulf states as the low pressure system is forecast to move relatively quickly east of Florida, ending the rain there during Thursday morning. Meanwhile, light wintry precipitation is expected to spread eastward across the northern Plains on Thursdays near and ahead of a warm front. Elsewhere, a stationary front lingering across the Great Lakes is expected to bring light amounts of snowfall across the region through Thursday. Kong Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_ndfd.php