Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 209 PM EST Wed Jan 10 2024 Valid 00Z Thu Jan 11 2024 - 00Z Sat Jan 13 2024 ...Unsettled weather conditions continue for the West... ...Dangerously cold temperatures for the northern Rockies and Plains through this weekend... The system that impacted the eastern U.S. yesterday continues to move Northeast into southern Canada this afternoon. Any lingering precipitation in New England should come to an end tonight, but light snow showers will continue through Thursday for the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes regions as another, weaker low pressure system approaches from the west. Winds have remained elevated in the wake of the storm, but wind speeds will decrease tonight as the system moves farther away. In the West, unsettled weather is forecast to continue through the end of the week as a series of frontal boundaries push south across the region. The combination of heavy snow and strong winds will create blizzard conditions at times in parts of the Northwest through this afternoon, and storm total snow accumulations may reach several feet in the higher elevations of the Cascades and Olympics. Low visibility will make travel conditions particularly hazardous for many of the mountain passes. The Northwest will see lighter precipitation tonight into Thursday, then a Pacific low pressure system will approach and heavy precipitation will return Friday and Saturday. Heavy snow and strong winds will also spread south into the Sierra, Great Basin, and Four Corners regions today as a cold front passes through. Snow squalls with rapidly changing visibility, occasional whiteouts, and possible flash freezes will make road conditions dangerous. The upper level disturbance affecting the Great Basin and Four Corners region will swing into the Central U.S. Thursday into Friday, and strong low pressure will develop over the southern Plains. This system will track towards the Mid-Mississippi Valley Friday and into the Great Lakes region Saturday. This will likely be an impactful winter storm from the Central Plains to the Great Lakes, and there is a high probability (greater than 70% chance) that snowfall will exceed 4 inches from southeast Nebraska to Michigan. Considerable impacts from blowing snow and drifting snow in strong winds are also possible. The coldest air of the season so far will filter into the Central U.S. through this weekend as a cold front gradually moves south across the region and strong high pressure builds to the north. This pattern will create a tight pressure gradient, which will result in dangerously cold wind chills. The coldest days will be Friday and Saturday when high temperatures in the northern Rockies and northern Plains will be as low as 10-20 degrees below zero. In the Central Plains, high temperatures will only reach the single digits and teens. Wind chills will make conditions particularly dangerous with the coldest wind chills reaching 40-60 degrees below zero for the northern Rockies and northern Plains and 30-40 degrees below zero for the central Plains. Widespread Wind Chill Advisories and Wind Chill Watches are in effect. Frostbite and hypothermia will be concerns if precautions are not taken when outside or traveling. Dolan Graphics available at https://www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_ndfd.php