Short Range Forecast Discussion
NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD
257 AM EST Fri Jan 24 2020

Valid 12Z Fri Jan 24 2020 - 12Z Sun Jan 26 2020

...Wintry weather from the Upper Midwest to the Great Lakes, Appalachians
and Northeast...

...Heavy rain and some areas of flooding will be possible in the central
and southern Appalachians, and the Mid-Atlantic...

...Waves of unsettled weather in the Pacific Northwest where multiple
bouts of heavy rain and heavy mountain snow are expected...

There will be no shortage of active weather in the eastern U.S. this
weekend thanks to a potent upper-level low pressure system slowly
advancing towards the East Coast. Periods of snow will be most common in
the Midwest and Great Lakes where several inches of snow will accumulate.
Hazardous travel conditions are possible in parts of these aforementioned
regions for the Friday morning commute. As the storm pushes east late
Friday, so will its shield of precipitation which will encounter low level
cold air in parts of the central and northern Appalachians Saturday
morning. In response, precipitation will fall in the form of snow and
freezing rain from northern Pennsylvania early Saturday to northern New
England Saturday night. Over a tenth of an inch of ice accumulation is
possible in the higher elevations of the Northeast with a couple inches of
snow also in play. Expect snow showers to linger around the Great Lakes
into Sunday morning. The I-95 corridor will look to remain mostly rain for
the duration of this storm system.

To the south, heavy rain will be a concern as rainfall totals of as much
as 1 to 2 inches with locally heavier amounts can be expected in the
Virginia Blue Ridge on south to the Smokey Mountains later today. Rainfall
rates may be high enough to generate areas of flash flooding in portions
the central Appalachians and over the Virginia and Maryland Piedmont this
evening and early Saturday morning. The plume of moisture associated with
this system will advance north and east Saturday into the Northeast with
heavy showers and breezy conditions along the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast
coasts. Most locations neighboring the I-95 corridor will receive around
1" of rainfall with locally higher amounts possible. Drier conditions will
arrive first in the Mid-Atlantic Saturday evening while the Northeast will
have to wait to dry out until Sunday morning.

Switching coasts, several rounds of heavy precipitation will continue over
the Northwest through into the weekend as a series of Pacific cold fronts
push into the region. Heavy rain will be the primary precipitation type
for the coastal ranges and valleys where as much as a few inches of rain
are possible. Meanwhile, the Washington and Oregon Cascades will contend
with heavy snow where snowfall totals as much as 2 feet are anticipated.
Look for this active weather pattern to continue into the start of the
upcoming week.

Weekend temperatures across the contiguous U.S. will generally be near to
above normal. The warmest anomalies will be found in the Great Lakes,
Upper Midwest, and Intermountain West. One exception to this milder trend
will be the Southeast where temperatures overall will average a few
degrees below normal.

Mullinax

Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_ndfd.php