Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 259 PM EST Mon Nov 09 2020 Valid 00Z Tue Nov 10 2020 - 00Z Thu Nov 12 2020 ...Heavy rain and flooding associated with Tropical Storm Eta slowly diminishing across southern Florida... ...Showers and thunderstorms as well as wintry precipitation expected on Tuesday from the central Plains to the Upper Great Lakes... ...Heavy rain and flash flooding threat shifts to the southern/central Appalachians and Mid-Atlantic by Wednesday... Tropical Storm Eta continues to slowly drift southwestward and away from southern Florida this evening. Much of the heavy rain has ended here, but flooding will be slow to recede across portions of the Sunshine State due to over a foot of rain falling in certain low-lying areas. The National Hurricane Center is forecasting Eta to slowly meander over the eastern Gulf of Mexico through midweek. Across the central U.S., an autumn cold front is currently pushing through the central Plains and Upper Midwest. While it does so, showers and isolated thunderstorms can be found along the front, with a few areas of mixed precipitation well behind across the northern Plains. By Tuesday an area of low pressure is expected to form across the southern Plains along this same front and strengthen as it races toward the Upper Great Lakes. Cold air in place across the central Plains and Upper Mississippi Valley will allow for developing precipitation to fall as snow. Snowfall amounts of 3 to 6 inches are possible from central Nebraska to northern Wisconsin. A light glaze of freezing rain and/or sleet will be possible further east and closer to the low pressure center. Winter weather will also be easy find across the northern/central Rockies and Cascades. Multiple energy impulses will create conditions ripe for high elevation snow, with multiple mountain peaks potentially picking up over a foot of snow during the next couple of days. By Wednesday, the aforementioned cold front will approach the eastern third of the U.S. and interact with abundant moisture streaming in from the western Atlantic and eastern Gulf of Mexico. Some of this moisture can also be traced back to Tropical Storm Eta, which is forecast to still be churning in the Gulf of Mexico at this point. These atmospheric ingredients will lead to the likelihood of heavy rain along the southern and central Appalachians, as well as portions of the Mid-Atlantic. Current forecasts call for a widespread area of 1 to 3 inches of rain, with locally higher amounts possible. The biggest threat associated with the heavy rain will be flash flooding from the southern Appalachians to Mid-Atlantic. Residents in this region should clean out any drainage areas that may have become clogged with leaves over the last few weeks before the heavy rain arrives. Meanwhile, temperatures will run well above average across the eastern U.S. through Wednesday. In fact, record-breaking warm temperatures are likely as highs continue to reach into the 70s and 80s, with lows only dipping into the 50s and 60s. On the western side of the country record lows will be possible across California and the Southwest on Tuesday, before temperatures moderate slightly on Wednesday. Snell Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_ndfd.php