Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 351 AM EDT Tue Oct 6 2020 Valid 12Z Tue Oct 6 2020 - 12Z Thu Oct 8 2020 ...Hurricane Delta intensifying over western Caribbean and headed towards the Gulf of Mexico... ...Mainly tranquil weather pattern for most of the nation through early Thursday... A relatively quiet weather pattern will be in place across the majority of the continental U.S. through midweek, with pleasant autumnal weather for much of the eastern half of the U.S. and little in the way of rainfall from the Plains to the Mid-Atlantic region. Showers are likely across portions of the Northeast as a cold front crosses the region on Wednesday, but rainfall amounts are expected to be under an inch. It will also continue to be dry for the western U.S. and western High Plains, except above normal temperatures are expected to continue as the upper level ridge continues to hold strong over the region. Widespread highs in the 80s and 90s are expected. In addition, there are air quality alerts in effect for portions of California, Oregon, and Colorado owing to smoke from the ongoing wildfires. For the Gulf Coast region, the next couple of days will be relatively uneventful compared to what is expected beyond the end of this forecast period when Hurricane Delta threatens portions of the coast. Scattered showers and a few storms will be possible each day across Florida and the central Gulf Coast region that is well in advance of the hurricane, with conditions deteriorating by the end of the week. The National Hurricane Center has additional information on this, and residents in the cone of uncertainty should consider making early preparations. Hamrick Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_ndfd.php