Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 300 PM EST Fri Feb 28 2025 Valid 00Z Sat Mar 01 2025 - 00Z Mon Mar 03 2025 ...Heavy snow possible near the U.S. Canadian border from the Great Lakes to Maine... ...Temperatures drop well below average from Ohio Valley to East Coast this weekend... ...Critical Fire Weather Risk from portions of the Southwest to Southern Plains this weekend... A potent low pressure system will track along the U.S. Canada border through Saturday. The attendant cold fronts will propagate through the Ohio Valley and East Coast, where a cool continental airmass will flow into. Temperatures are likely to fall well below average as a result. Highs may drop between 15-30 degrees below average in some parts of the East this weekend. Snow showers will develop downwind of the Great Lakes due to northwesterly flow on the backside of the cold front. Heavier snowfall is more likely over portions of the Northern Appalachians where upslope enhancement could occur. Gusty winds are also possible over parts of the Ohio Valley into the Northeast. Meanwhile, troughing in the West will promote unsettled weather across the region this weekend. A mid-level low will weaken as it moves across the Southwest. Dry and windy conditions along the base of the trough will support a Critical Fire Weather risk from southeastern Arizona into far southwestern New Mexico on Saturday followed by southeastern New Mexico and western Texas on Monday and Tuesday. Some rain/snow showers may develop over the Four Corners on Sunday followed by potential scattered shower and thunderstorm activity over the Southern Plains on Monday. An amplifying upper trough in the East Pacific will bring more rain showers and mountain snow to the West Coast beginning Saturday night. This system may generate severe storms over portions of the Lower/Middle Mississippi Valley and Southeast/Mid-Atlantic Coast next Tuesday-Wednesday respectively. Kebede Graphics available at https://www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_ndfd.php