Short Range Forecast Discussion
NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD
317 PM EDT Thu Apr 25 2024

Valid 00Z Fri Apr 26 2024 - 00Z Sun Apr 28 2024

...An active weather pattern for much of the Plains into the Mid
to Upper Mississippi Valley regions...

...Thunderstorms to bring heavy rains, localized flash flooding
and severe weather to portions of the Plains...

...An elevated to critical fire weather threat across the Southern
High Plains...

..Cooler than average temperatures expected from the Rockies to
the West coast and from the Mid-Atlantic to the Northeast, while
much above average temperatures spread from the Southern Plains to
the Great Lakes...


An active weather pattern expected across the mid section of the
nation from the Plains into the Mid to Upper Mississippi Valley. 
Two strong storms expected to produce a variety of spring time
weather over the next several days across these regions.
Thunderstorm activity occurring across portions of the Central
Plains, Lower Arkansas and Lower Missouri Valleys Thursday
afternoon will be expanding northward into the Northern
Plains/Upper Mississippi Valley region and southward into the
Southern Plains as the first of two strong lows to affect these
regions begins to deepen across the Central High Plains and move
northeastward.  There is the likelihood of severe weather across
much of the Central to Southern High Plains from Thursday
afternoon into Thursday night/early Friday along and ahead of a
strengthening frontal zone.  This severe weather threat will then
push farther to the east during the day on Friday into eastern
portions of the Central to Southern Plains, Lower Missouri and
Lower Arkansas River Valleys as the strong cold front also pushes
eastward.  In addition, heavy rains from the expected thunderstorm
activity poses the threat of localized flooding from this
afternoon through Friday, especially across the eastern portions
of the Central to Southern Plains into the into Lower Missouri and
Lower Arkansas River Valleys.  In the wake of the first strong
storm pushing northeastward into the Northern Plains/Upper
Mississippi Valley on Saturday, where it will produce potential
for moderate to heavy rainfall amounts, a second storm will begin
to deepen across the Central High Plains.  Another round of
thunderstorms, heavy rains, flash flooding and severe weather is
again possible across the Southern Plains beginning Saturday
afternoon and continuing into Sunday.

In contrast to the wet, stormy weather across large portions of
the mid section of the nation, windy and dry conditions are
expected across the Southern High Plains from southeast Colorado,
the Texas-Oklahoma Panhandle region, southward through West to
Southwest Texas and eastern to southeastern New Mexico.  The
combination of the windy conditions and low relative humidities
will support a prolonged period of elevated to critical fire
weather conditions from Thursday through the weekend.

A frontal boundary moving off the northeast Pacific into the
Pacific Northwest this evening will keep conditions wet across the
Pacific Northwest and Northern Rockies tonight. This wet weather
and high elevation snows are then expected to spread into the
Great Basin and Central Rockies on Friday. 

Temperatures are expected to be below average across most areas
from the Rockies to the West coast over the next few days.  Much
above average temperatures Thursday across the Central and
Northern High Plains will be replaced by much cooler temps by the
beginning of the weekend.  Much above average temperatures
expected from the Southern Plains, northeast the Mississippi
Valley, Ohio Valley and into the Great Lakes over the next two
days, while cooler,slightly below average temperatures expected
from the Mid-Atlantic into the Northeast.

Oravec

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