Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 358 PM EDT Sun Mar 15 2020 Valid 00Z Mon Mar 16 2020 - 00Z Wed Mar 18 2020 ...There is a slight risk of sever thunderstorms over parts of the Southern High Plains... Heavy snow will produce multiple feet of snow for the Sierra Nevada... ...There is a slight risk of excessive rainfall over parts of Southern California on Monday into Tuesday morning... An upper-level low will slowly move southward along the West Coast through Tuesday evening, pushing a slow-moving cold front ahead of it through California as a stalled front remains across the Intermountain West. The upper-level low will aid in streaming a plume of moisture into Southern/Central California through Monday evening. These features are expected to lead to persistent precipitation for the Great Basin into California. Heavy snow will develop over higher elevations of the Sierra Nevada, measured in multiple feet. In lower elevations of coastal California, rain rain develops by Sunday evening continuing through Tuesday morning. Rainfall amounts could be over 2 inches, which may cause scattered flooding and flash flooding in some locations. Urban areas and burn scars could particularly have these problems. A secondary surge of moisture will move into parts of Central California as rain returns to the Coastal Northern/Central California by Tuesday evening. A front will meander across the Southern Plains through the Lower Mississippi Valley and Southeast on Sunday evening into Tuesday evening. Moisture from the Western Gulf of Mexico stream moisture northward over the Southern Plains into the Lower Mississippi Valley overrunning the front producing scattered showers and thunderstorms across those regions and northward. Rain amounts could reach over an inch across portions of Texas, Eastern Oklahoma, and Arkansas through Monday night, so there is some potential for isolated flash flooding there. The Big Bend area of Texas can expect the possibility of severe thunderstorms Sunday. Lighter rain is possible for the Tennessee Valley, Lower Ohio Valley, and the Southeast into Monday. Farther north, snow is expected to spread eastward from The Northern Plains into the Northeast producing 1 to 2 inches of snow from parts of Northern Plains eastward to Northern New England. Mixed precipitation or snow could reach the Northeast Monday night ahead of another frontal system. The Northern High Plains will remain below normal temperature-wise the next couple of days, though not quite as frigid as recently. The West Coast should also have high temperatures 10 to 20 degrees below average with the influence from the upper low. Today, the Central/Southern Plains will be cooler than normal, but should moderate on Monday. Meanwhile south of the front, the Gulf Coast states can expect warm temperatures, generally 10 to 15 degrees above average. Ziegenfelder Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_ndfd.php